IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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Corporation 


23  WE  :T  main  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


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D 


n 


n 


D 
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n 


E 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagde 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaur^e  et/ou  pelliculde 


□    Cover  title  missing/ 
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Reli6  avec  d'autres  documents 

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n 


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Coloured  pages/ 
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obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


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Additional  comments:/ 
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26X 

30X 

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y 

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12X 

16X 

20X 

24X 

MK                             32X 

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shall  contain  the  symbol  -^  (meaning  "CON- 
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ginArosit*  de: 

Library  Division 

Provincial  Archives  of  British  Columbia 

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conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

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papier  est  imprimAe  sont  filmAs  en  commengant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  filmAs  en  commen^ant  par  le 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ♦>  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
filmAs  A  des  taux  de  reduction  diffdrants. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clichA,  il  est  film6  A  partir 
de  {'angle  sup^rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droits, 
et  de  haut  en  bas.  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nicessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mdthode. 


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B 


LEGISLATUKE    OF    MINNESOTA. 


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*.i 


REPORT 


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FROM  A 


SELECT    COMMITTEE 


OP  THE 


HOUSE    OF    REPEESENTATIVES, 


#' 


ON  THL  OVEELAND  EMIGRATION  EOUTE  FROM  MINNESOTA 
TO  BRITISH  OREGON. 


«i 


WITH  AN  APPENDIX. 


Printed  by  Order  of  the  H.  of  R. 


•-    'Ft' 


SAINT  PAUL: 

EARLE    S.  GOODRICH.  STATE  PRINTER. 


I'lONEER   AND  DEMOCBAT  OFnCE. 


1858. 


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„>  AS-: 


REPORT 


The  Select  Committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  to  whom 
certain  Resolutions  of  citizens  of  St.  Paul,  upon  the  subject  of 
overland  emigration  from  Minnesota  to  British  Oregon,  have  been 
referred  would  respectfully  report : — 

Such  a  continental  communication  has  suddenly  become  a  prac- 
tical question,  in  view  of  the  discovery  of  gold  upon  the  waters  of 
Frazer  and  Thompson  Rivers.  Little  doubt  now  remains  that 
Great  Britain  is  in  possession  of  a  district  on  the  Pacific  coast 
which  is  likely  to  become  a  second  Australia,  changing  the  current 
of  emigration  from  southern  to  northern  routes  across  the  Con- 
tinent. 

Our  citizens,  in  a  series  of  meetings,  have  embodied  for  the  pub- 
lic information  numerous  facts  and  statistics .  which  establish  the 
superiority  of  a  route  through  the  valleys  of  the  Red  River  of  the 
North  and  the  Saskatchewan.  The  Committee  append  to  this  Re- 
port the  published  proceedings  of  these  meetings,  at  one  of  which 
some  legislative  action,  hereafter  to  be  considered,  was  advocated. 

In  addition  to  the  advantages  which  the  Minnesota  and  Saskatch- 
ewan land  route  is  thus  found  to  possess,  there  is  reliable  testi- 
mony that  the  western  districts  of  Minnesota  may  be  connected  by 
continuous  steamboat  navipiition  with  a  point  at  the  eastern  base 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  is  only  eight  days  journey  from 
the  gold  districts  of  British  Oregon. 

The  head  of  steamboat  navigation  on  the  Red  River  of  the  North, 
is  in  about  46  dcg.  23  min.  The  river,  flowing  from  south  to  north, 
is,  according  to  Capt.  John  Pope,  five  feet  deep  at  the  mouth  of 
Sioiix  Wood  River  ;  six  feet  twenty  miles  north,  at  the  site  of  a- 
military  post  proposed  by  Maj.  S.  Woons,  6th  Infantry,  in  1849,  and 
soon  to  bo  occupied  as  Fort  xVbercrombie  ;  thence  to  Shayenne,  six 
feet ;  from  Shayenne  to  Goose  River,  nine  feet,  but  with  an  inter- 
vening rapid  one  mile  long  with  five  feet  upon  it ;  from  Goose 
River  to  Red  Lake  River,  twelve  feet ;  from  Red  Lake  River  to 
Pembina  and  Lake  Winnipeg,  sixteen  feet  deep. 

Every  portion  of  Minnesota  is  in  intimate  relation  with  the  nav- 
igation thus  described.    When  the  International  Emigrant  Route 


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NORTH-WESTERN    ROUTE 


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to  the  North  Pacific  receives  the  recognition  it  so  amply  deserves, 
a  line  of  steamboats  on  the  Ked  River  would  be  reached  over  the 
area  of  Minnesota  by  various  communications.  From  England, 
Canada  and  the  States  within  the  line  of  the  Lakes,  Lake  Superior 
and  the  valley  oi  i;o  Upper  Miysissippi  would  be  favorite  routes  : 
while  from  the  Southern  and  Middle  States,  routes  through  the 
southern  counties  of  the  State  and  the  valley  of  the  Minnesota 
Kivei  would  be  eligible.  Whatever,  therefore,  tends  to  open  the 
route  through  Northern  Minnesota  and  British  America  west,  can- 
not fail  to  enlist  the  interest  and  co-operation  f  every  Minne- 
sotian. 

We  have  shown  above,  from  the  soundings  and  report  cf  Capt. 
Pope,  that  the  Red  River  is  navigable  from  a  poin;  midway  of  our 
western  boundary,  to  Lake  Winnipeg.  That  lake  is  two  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  long — of  course,  navigable  by  a  propeller  or  any 
class  of  vessels.  From  its  northern  extremitj',  the  Saskatchewan 
is  navigable  seven  hundred  miles  west  on  an  air-line  (much  further 
by  the  windings  of  the  stream)  with  no  material  obstacle  except 
the  Rapids  at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  The  traveler  may  ascend  the 
north  and  south  branch  of  the  Saskatcliewan,  by  either  route  reach- 
ing the  immediate  vicinity  of  favorable  passes  through  the  Rocky 
Mountains.  If,  at  this  moment,  these  links  of  internal  navigation 
were  connected  by  vessels,  the  Overland  Journey  to  the  headwaters 
of  Frazer  River  could  be  made  in  twenty-four  days.  The  volume 
and  depth  of  the  Saskatchewan  is  fully  equal  to  the  Mississippi 
above  Cairo. 

It  is  understood  that  the  Canadian  Parliament  has  incorporated 
some  enterprizing  citizens  of  Toronto  into  a  "Western  Transporta- 
tion Company;"  and  if  the  policy  of  colonization  and  settlement 
is  to  succeed  the  exclusive  occnpntion  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Com- 
pany, it  may  be  proper  for  the  Legislature  of  Minnesota  to  co- 
operate, as  far  as  the  Constitution  will  admit,'  in  facilitating  the 
enterprise  of  the  above  named  Company  or  similar  associations 
within  the  limits  cf  this  State.  As  no  special  act  for  such  a  pur- 
pose can  be  enacted,  the  Committee  have  prepared  a  general  pro- 
vision that  may  be  adequate  to  encourage  any  enterprise  which 
seeks  to  appropriate  the  navigation  of  the  streams  connecting  with 
our  northern  frontier. 

The  Committee  are  impressed  witli  the  belief  that  a  re-publica- 
tion of  such  statements  as  will  illustrate  and  enlorce  the  advan- 
tages of  the  International  Overland  Route  to  the  Pacific,  should 
be  included  among  the  legislative  documents  of  this  session,  and 
these  accordingly  accompany  the  present  report. 


TO    BKITLSir    OKEGON. 


the 


In  regard  to  the  rocoiniiioiidations  of  the  citizens  of  Saint  Paul, 
they  are  best  statecl  in  the  terms  of  resolutions  adopted  at  a  meet- 
ing held  in  the  Ilall  of  the  House  of  Ropresentatives  on  Saturday, 
Jnly  n,  Hon.  J.  Starkay  presiding.  The  resolutions  were  as 
follows: 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Legislature  is  hereby  memorialized  to  pass 
an  Act  authorizing  the  incorporated  cities  and  towns  of  Minnesota 
to  guarantee  the  re-payment  of  sums  advanced  by  the  citizens  of 
said  cities  or  towns  in  organizing  and  furnishing  overland  parties 
to  the  Pacific,  but  limiting,  as  may  be  deemed  expedient,  the  ex- 
tent of  such  guaranty. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  State  Government  be  also  memorialized,  on 
the  return  of  parties  so  organized  and  forwarded,  to  compile, 
publish  and  circulate,  under  the  direction  of  the  Governor,  all 
observations  and  information  which  may  be  collected  by  said  par- 
tics,  and  to  appropriate  at  this  session  a  reasonable  amount  for 
that  purpose." 

The  Committee  can  readily  appreciate  that  the  local  advantages 
to  the  cities  and  towns  of  this  State  resulting  from  the  establish- 
ment beyond  all  question  of  the  superiority  of  the  Minnesota 
Overland  Route,  would  justify  a  reasonable  degree  of  aid  by  their 
authorities;  while  the  proposition  that  the  State  should  supervise 
and  provide  for  the  publication  of  any  valuable  information  ob- 
tained by  the  explorations  of  parties  from  Minnesota,  is  emi- 
nently appropriate.  A  Bill  is  therefore  submitted  in  accordance 
with  the  foregoing  views ;  but  which  contains  some  modification 
of  the  suggestions  made  by  the  memorialists. 
Respectfully  submitted, 

J.  R.  WAKEFIFLD,  ] 

S.  R.  JOHNSON, 

E,  PIERCE,  ^Committee. 

J.  G.  RANDALL,       | 

JAMES  C.  FROST.    J 


» 


with 


A  Bill  for  the  Encouragement  of  an  International  Overland  Emi- 
gration Route  from  Minnesota  to  Puget  Sound. 

Be  it  enacted  Ij  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Minnesota  : 

Sec.  I.  Any  company  incorporated  by  the  English  or  Canadian 
Governments  for  the  purpose  of  trade  or  transportation  upon  the 
rivers  which  form  portions  of  the  northern  and  western  boundaries 
of  this  State,  is  hereby  authorized   and  empowered  to  exercise  all 


lb 


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NORTH-WESTERN   ROUTE 


£ 


the  powers  conferred  by  their  respective  charters  within  the  limits 
of  this  State,  but  upon  the  express  condition  that  no  power  thereby 
exercised  shall  interfere  with  any  right  now  hold  and  enjoyed  by 
the  citizens  of  tliis  State,  or  shall  be  inconsistent  with  the  Consti- 
tution or  Laws  of  this  State. 

Sec.  2.  The  authorities  of  incorporated  cities  and  towns  in  Min- 
nesota are  hereby  authorized  to  appropriate  money  or  guarantee 
the  repayment  of  sums  subscribed  and  paid  by  individuals  for  or- 
ganizing and  furnishing  overland  parties  of  exploration  during  the 
year  1858;  but  the  total  amount  of  such  appropriation  or  guaran- 
ty by  or  on  behalf  of  any  single  city  or  town,  shall  not  exceed 
the  sum  of  three  thousand  dollars. 

Sec.  3.  The  Governor  is  hereby  authorized  and  required  to  com- 
pde  such  reports  of  overland  parties  as  he  may  deem  proper  for  pub- 
he  information,  and  cither  publish  the  same  during  the  recess  of  the 
Legislature  or  report  at  the  ensuing  session  thereof,  as  he  may 
deem  expedient. 


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A-PPENDIX. 


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APPENDIX    NO.   I- 


^PllOCKKDINdX   OF    I'l'ULKJ    MEETINdrt    IlKKlJ    AT    IT.    I'AL'L,    MINNESOTA,  ON   THE    FIRST, 
SEVENTH,  TI:NTH    AND   SEVENTEliNTII    KAYS   OF   .IlLV,   A.   0.   1H58. 


^( 


PRELIMINAliY  MEETING. 

At  an  informal  meeting-  of  citizens  of  St  Paul  for  the  purpose 
of  considerinjf  tlie  practicability  uf  a  roule  from  Ari/mesota  to  the 
Northern  Pacific  Coast,  throug-h  the  valley  of  the  Ecd  River  of  the 
North,  the  Saskatcliewan,  the  Upper  Cijlumbia  aii'I  the  gold  dis- 
trict of  Frazer  and  Tiiompson  Rivers,  Col.Wm.  II.  Noble  was  called 
to  the  chair,  and  J.  A.  Whkelock  was  appointed  Secretary. 

Whereupon,  a  Committee  consisting  of  N.  W.  Kitson,  James  Rm- 
PATH,  John  II.  Stevens,  James  W.  Taylok,  and  J.  C.  Borden,  were 
appointed  and  requested  to  communicate  to  an  adjourned  meeting 
upon  the  subject  above  named. 

Adjourned  to  meet  on  the  call  of  tlie  Chairman. 


*i 


FIRST  ADJOURNED  MEETING. 

An  adjourned  meeting  of  citizens  of  St.  Paul  and  of  citizens  of 
Minnesota  sojourning  in  St.  Paul,  was  held  at  the  Fuller  House,  on 
Wednesday,  July  7,  at  8  P.  M.  Col.  Wm.  IT.  Noijle,  of  St.  Paul,  re- 
sumed the  chair,  and  Mr.  E.  Pierce,  of  St.  Peter,  was-  appointed 
Secretary. 

Mr.  James  W.  Taylor,  from  the  committee  previously  appointed, 
presented  the  following  report  upon  the  general  subject  of  an  over- 
land route,  and  the  naturcii  features  of  the  regions  connected 
with  it. 

geographical    REI'ORT. 

It  is  now  established  that  a  District  of  British  Oregon,  liolding  a 
relation  to  Puget  Sound,  similar  to  that  of  the  Sacramento  Valley  to 


1 1 : 

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10 


NORTII-WESTEUX   EOUTE 


the  Bay  of  San  Francisco,  contains  rich  and  extensive  gold  pla- 
cers 

The  upper  waters  of  Frazor  River,  including-  its  principal  tribu- 
tary, Thompson  Kiver,  are  eagerly  sought  by  adventurers  from  Or- 
egon and  California,  and  all  accounts  concur  that  the  surface  min- 
ings are  as  succcssf'  I  as  those  of  California  and  Australia  have 
been.  Geolooists  have  anticipated  such  a  discovery,  and  Governor 
Stevens  in  his  last  message  to  the  Legislative  Assembly  of  Wash- 
ington Territory,  claims  that  a  district  south  of  the  international 
boundary  is  equally  auriferous. 

The  Frazer  river  mines  have  already  been  mentioned  in  the 
British  Parliament  as  not  less  valuable  and  important  than  the 
gold  fields  of  Australia,  and  it  is  in  view  of  the  influence  of  these 
events  upon  overland  emigration,  that  the  present  report  is  sub- 
mitted. 

The  southern  boundary  of  ^Minnesota  is  in  latitude  43i  degrees  ; 
St.  Paul  and  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony  are  about  45  degrees,  and 
•our  northern  boundarv,  conterminous  with  the  international  line,  is 
partly  on  the  parallel  of  49  degrees. 

The  Frazer  River  mines  will  probably  be  explored  from  latitude 
49  degrees  to  55  degrees  ;  therefore,  if  an  overland  emigrant  route 
thither  is  practicable  from  Minnesota,  it  will  be  an  important  con- 
sideration in  favor  of  such  a  route,  that  the  valleys  of  the  Upper 
Mississjppi  and  the  Red  River  of  the  north,  are  on  the  most  direct 
line  of  communication  from  Canada  and  the  States  north  of  latitude 
40  degrees  to  the  Frazer  River  district. 

An  overland  route  through  Minnesota,  ascending  the  course  of 
the  Saskatchewan  and  crossing  the  Rocky  Mountains,  in  latitude 
54  degrees,  to  British  Oregon,  would  traverse  a  region  of  Xorth 
America,  hitherto  withheld  from  colonization,  but  soon  to  be  surren- 
dered by  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  for  civilized  settlement. 
West  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  that  company  claims  no  chartered 
rights,  and  their  licence  of  Indian  trade  will  expire  in  May,  1859. 
The  British  Parliament  have  just  published  the  report  of  a  select 
committee  of  the  House  of  Commons,  which  exhibits  a  disposition 
on  the  part  of  the  company  to  withdraw  from  an  immense  district 
reaching  west  of  Lake  Winnipeg  to  the  Pacific,  if  thereby  a  recog- 
nition of  the  exclusive  privileges  hitherto  enjoyed  by  them  within 
the  remainder  of  their  chartered  limits  can  be  obtained.  Even  such 
a  compromise  is  vigorously  opposed  by  the  people  of  Canada,  but 
the  citizens  of  Minnesota  would  have  reason  to  be  satisfied  if  our 
northwestern  connection  with  Assiniboia,  Saskatchewan  and  Brit- 
ish Oregon,  should  be  placed  on  the  footing  of  such  an  adjustment. 


In  this 
cy  of  Gi 
city"  is 
of  the  A 
rance  th 
lected  a 
become, 
pool  of 
As  to 
(so  the 
charter 
victory, 
advanta; 
that   imi 
onizatioi 
the  Am( 
tiers,  ai 
receive 
towns, 
century. 
The  pi 
isfaction 
tant  sub 
if  not  b, 
party  to 
westwar 
of  fifty  ( 
Vancou\ 
will  the 
locating 
commiss 
gaged  i 
to  Lake 
comes  t 
renew  in 
Australi 
An   0 
Puget  S 
and  Va 
which,  r 
Mississi 
From  h 
two  to  ( 


TO    BRITISH    OREGON. 


11 


In  this  respect,  our  interests  are  identical  with  the  inevitable  poli- 
cy of  Great  Britain.  Henceforth,  no  other  relation  than  "recipro- 
city" is  possible  between  British  America  and  the  adjacent  States 
of  the  American  Union.  Minnesota  especially  welcomes  the  assu- 
rance that  Victoria,  the  capital  of  Vancouver  Ishand,  is  to  be  se- 
lected as  the  Naval  station  of  England  on  the  Pacific,  perhaps  to 
become,  under  the  impulse  of  an  international  railroad,  the  Liver- 
pool of  the  Pacific  coast. 

As  to  the  "  adventurers  of  England  trading  into  Hudson's  Bay  " 
(so  the  stockholders  of  the  company  are  technically  styled  in  the 
charter  of  incorporation)  they  can  turn  their  partial  defeat  into  a 
victory.  The  map  of  Arrowsmith  exliibits  their  posts  at  every 
advantageous  locality  between  latitude  49  and  55  degrees.  Open 
that  immense  belt  of  country  to  European  and  American  col- 
onization— extend  over  it  the  benefits  of  "Reciprocity" — adopt 
the  American  system  of  land  surveys  and  land  bounties  to  set- 
tlers, and  the  members  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  would 
receive  more  advantage  in  ten  years  as  proprietors  of  cities  and 
towns,  than  would  be  possible  for  tlieni  as  fur  traders  in  a 
century. 

The  press  and  citizens  of  St.  Paul  have  observed  with  mucli  sat- 
isfaction the  progress  of  public  opinion  in  England  on 'this  impor- 
tant subject.  Encouraged  by  the  London  Geographical  Society, 
if  not  by  the  Government,  Captain  Pailiser  leads  an  exploring 
party  to  the  sources  of  the  South  Saskatchewan,  and  the  passes 
westward  through  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Col.  Elliott,  at  the  head 
of  fifty  engineers  and  as  many  soldiers,  has  recently  arrived  at 
Vancouver  Island,  and  accompanied  by  an  hundred  voyageurs, 
will  thence  move  eastward  through  British  territory,  definitely 
locating  a  railroad  route  as  he  advances.  Simultaneously,  a  joint 
commission  of  the  American  and  English  governments  are  en- 
gaged in  running  the  international  boundary,  from  Puget  Sound 
to  Lake  Superior,  commencing  at  the  Pacific  terminus.  And  now 
comes  the  gold  discovery  of  the  Northwest,  which  will  probably 
renew  in  that  direction  the  wonderful  history  of  California  and 
Australia. 

An  overland  route  from  St.  Paul,  on  American  territory,  to 
Puget  Sound,  or  through  the  Saskatchewan  Basin  to  Frazer  River 
and  Vancouver  Island,  is  central  to  an  immense  and  fertile  area, 
which,  at  no  distant  dav,  must  connect  with  the  channels  of  the 
Mississippi  and  St.  Lawrence,  within  the  limits  of  Minnesota. 
From  latitude  fortj'-four  to  fifty-four,  and  from  longitude  ninety- 
two  to  one  hundred  and  twelve  (west  of  Greenwich)  or  between 


I 


'  f 


'?■■( 


i 


■7 


i : 


12  NOBTH-WESTERN    ROUTE 

Lakes  Superior  and  Winnipeg  on  the  east,  and  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, there  is  comprised  an  area  of  631,050  square  miles.  Extend 
these  lines  of  latitude  to  the  Pacific  in  longitude  one  hundred  and 
twenty-four,  and  we  have  a  further  area  of  378,636  square  miles, 
or  an  aggregate  of  1,009,686  square  miles — equal  in  extent  to 
France,  Germany,  Prussia,  Austria  and  that  portion  of  Russia 
which  lies  south  of  St.  Petersburg  and  west  of  Moscow.  A  dis- 
trict ten  degrees  of  latitude  wide  by  thirty-two  of  longitude  in 
length,  would  comprise  twenty-four  States  of  the  size  of  Ohio. 

Our  present  Inquiry,  however,  is  confined  to  the  upper  half  of 
this  vast  region,  or  exclusively  north  of  the  boundary  of  49  de- 
grees, and  since  an  emigration  route  to  Frazer  River  is  under  con- 
sideration, a  general  view  of  the  districts  to  be  traversed  by  such 
a  route  or  closely  connected  with  it,  will  first  be  presented.  Those 
districts  of  British  America  west  of  the  Lakes,  which,  by  soil  and 
climate,  are  suitable  for  settlement,  may  be  thus  enumerated : 

Vancouver  Island, 16,200  square  milos. 

Frazer  and  Thompson  Rivers, 00,000  do. 

Sources  of  Upper  Columbia, 20,000  do. 

Athabasca  District 50,000  do. 

•Saskatchewan,  Eod  llivcr,  Assineboiu,  &c 300,000  do, 

500,200 
Under  these  geographical  divisions,  whose  area  would  constitute 
twelve  States  of  the  size  of  Ohio,  we  propose  to  give  the  results 
of  a  Parliamentary  investigation,  just  published,  into  the  affairs  of 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  so  far  as  they  are  descriptive  of  the 
foregoing  districts. 

Yancouveu  Isl.\xd. — This  Island  is  fortilo,  well  timbered,  diver- 
sified b}'  intersecting  mountain  ranges  and  small  prairies,  with  ex- 
tensive coal  fields,  compared  to  the  West  Riding  of  Yorkshire 
coal,  and  fortunate  in  its  harbors.  Esquimaux  Harbor,  on  whicu 
Victoria  is  situated,  is  equal  to  San  Francisco.  The  salmon  and 
other  fisheries  are  excellent,  bail  this  advantage  is  shared  by  every 
stream  and  inlet  of  the  adjacent  coast.  The  climate  is  frpquently 
compared  with  that  of  England,  except  that  it  is  even  warmer. 
The  winter  is  stormy,  w:t'»  heavy  rains  in  November  and  Decern" 
bcr  ;  frosts  occur  in  January,  but  seldom  interrupt  agriculture  ; 
vegetation  starts  in  February,  progressing  rapidly  in  March,  and 
fostered  by  alternate  warm  showers  and  sunshine  in  April  and 
May,  while  intense  heat  and  drought  are  often  experienced  during 
June,  July  and  August.  As  already  remarked,  the  Island  has  an 
area  of  16,200  square  milOs,  or  as  large  as  Vermont  and  New 
Hampshire. 


,1 


TO    BKITISH    OIJEGON. 


13 


Frazek  and  Thompson  RivERs.-XarthwardofVancouver,  the  moun- 
tains trend  so  near  the  Pacific  as  to  obstruct  intercourse  with  tlie  in- 
terior, but  "  inside,"  to  use  tlie  language  of  a  witness,  "  it  is  a  fine 
open  country."  This  is  the  valley  of  Frazer  liivcr.  Ascending-  this 
river,  near  Fort  Langley,  "  a  large  tract  of  land  "  is  represented  as 
"  adapted  to  colonists  ;"  while  of  Thompson  River,  the  same  wit« 
ness  says  that  "  it  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  countries  in  the 
world" — climate  capable  of  producing  all  the  crops  of  England 
and  much  milder  than  Canada.  The  sources  of  Frazer  River,  in 
latitude  55  degrees,  are  separated  from  those  of  Peace  River, 
which  flows  through  the  Rocky  Mountains  eastwardly  into  the 
Athabasca,  by  the  distance  of  only  317  yards. 

SorncEs  of  tiij:  CoA'mbia — The  map  will  show  how  large  a  district 
of  British  Oregon  is  watered  by  tlie  Upper  Columbia,  and  its  tribu- 
tary, the  M'Gillivray,  or  Flat  How  River.  It  is  estimated  above  as 
20,000  square  miles,  and  has  been  described  in  cnthusiastie  terms 
by  the  Catholic  Bishop  of  Oregon,  De  Smet,  in  his  "  Oregon  Mis- 
sions. "  The  territory  of  the  Kootonais  Indians  would  seem, 
from  his  glowing  description,  to  be  divided  in  favorable  propor- 
tions between  forests  and  prairies  Of  timber  he  names  birch, 
pine  of  diflerent  species,  cedar  and  cj'prcss  He  remarked  speci- 
mens of  coal,  and  "  great  quantities  of  lead, "  apparently  mixed 
with  silver.  The  "source  of  the  Columbia"  seemed  to  impress 
him  as  a  "very  important  point."  He  observes  that  "  the  climate 
is  delightful ; "  the  "  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  are  seldom  known, 
the  snow  disappearing  as  it  falls."  He  reiterates  the  opinion 
"  that  the  advantages  nature  seems  to  have  bestowed  on  the 
source  of  the  Columbia  will  render  its  geographical  position  very 
important  at  some  day,  and  that  the  magic  hand  of  civilized  man 
would  transform  it  into  a  terrestrial  paradise. " 

It  is  an  interesting  coincidence  that  Father  De  Smet  published 
in  a  St.  Louis  paper,  a  few  m(mths  since,   a  similar  description  of 
this  region,  adding  that  it  could  be  reached  from  Salt  Lake  City 
along  the  western  base  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  with  wagons,  and 
that  Brigham  Young  proposed  to  lead  his  nert  Mormon  exodus  to 
the  source  of  the  Columbia  River.     Such  a  movement  is  not  im- 
probable, and  would  exhibit  greater  sagacity  than  an  emigration 
to  Sonora.     Already  the  Mormons  have  establisl^d  a   flourishing 
half-way  post  on  the  Salmon  River,  a  branch  of  the  Columbia,  and 
as  De  Smet  has  had  many  opportunities  for  ascertaining  the  de- 
»  signs  of  the  Mormon  hierarchy,  the  next  scene  of  their  zeal  and  in- 
dustry may  be  under  the  protection  of  the  British  crown. 


i    :1 


i}? 


i 


u 


NOETI r-\Vi:S IKKN   KOLTE 


The  Atiiahasca  District. — The  valleys  of  the  Peace  and  Athabas- 
ca rivers,  eastward  of  tlie  Rocky  Mountains  from  latitude  55  deg.  to 
58  dey.,  share  the  Pacific  climate  in  a  remarkable  degree.  The 
Rocky  Mountains  are  greatly  reduced  in  breadth  and  mean  eleva- 
tion, and  through  the  numerous  parses  between  their  lofty  peaks 
the  winds  of  the  racilic  reach  the  district  in  question.  Hence  it 
is,  that  Sir  Alexander  Mackenzie,  under  date  of  May  10th,  mentions 
the  exu  berant  verdure  of  the  whole  country — trees  about  to  blos- 
som, and  buffalo  attended  by  their  young.  During  the  late  Parlia* 
mentary  investigation,  similar  statements  were  elicited.  Dr. 
Richard  King,  who  accompanied  an  expedition  in  search  of  Sir 
John  Ross,  as  "  Surgeon  and  Naturalist, "  was  asked  what  por- 
tion of  the  country  visited  by  him  was  valuable  for  the  purpose  of 
settlement.  In  reply,  ho  described  "as  a  very  fertile  valley,"  a 
"  square  piece  of  country  "  bounded  on  the  south  by  Cumberland 
House,  and  by  the  Athabasca  Lake  on  the  nortli.  His  own  words 
are  as  follows  :  "  The  sources  of  the  Athabasca  and  the  sources 
of  the  Saskatchewan  include  an  enormous  area  of  countrj'.  It  is, 
in  fact,  a  vast  piece  of  land  surrounded  by  water.  "When  I  heard 
Dr.  Livingston's  description  of  that  country,  m  hich  he  found  in  the 
interior  of  Africa  within  the  Equator,  it  appeared  to  me  to  be  pre- 


cisely the  kind  of  country  which  I  am  now  describing. 


s):     *     >(: 


It 


is  a  rich  soil,  interspersed  with  well  wooded  country,  there  being 
growth  of  every  kind,  and  the  whole  vegetable  kingdom  alive. '' 
Wlien  a^ked  concerning  mineral  productions,  his  reply  was,  "  I  do 
not  know  of  any  other  mineral  except  limestone  ;  limestone  is  ap- 
parent in  all  directions.  *  *  The  birch,  the  beach  and  the 
maple  are  in  abundance,  and  there  is  every  sort  of  fruit.  "  When 
questi.^ned  farther,  as  to  the  growth  of  trees.  Dr.  King  replied  by 
a  comparison  "  with  the  magnificent  trees  rouud  Kensington  Park 
in  London.''  lie  described  a  farm  near  Cumberland  House,  under 
very  successful  cultivation — luxuriant  wheat,  potatoes,  barley, 
pigs,  cows  and  horses. 

TiiK  Saskatciikwax,  AsftiXEBOix  AXD  Red  Rivf.ij  District. — The  area 
northwest  of  Minnc-ota,  the  Saskatchewan  district,  is  estimated  to 
comprise  3GS,000  square  miles.  Northwest  from  Otter  Tail  Lake, 
the  gcograidiical  centre  of  Minnesota,  extends  a  vast  silurian  form- 
ation, bounded  on  the  west  along  the  eastern  base  of  the  Rocky 
Mountaina^)y  coal  measures.  Such  a  predominance  of  limestone 
implies  fertility  of  soil,  as  in  the  Northwestern  States,  and  a  speedy 
colonization  of  Saskatcliewan  would  be  assured,  if  the  current  ob. 
ection  to  the  severity  of  the  climate  was  removed.  On  this  point 
a  few  facts  will  be  presented. 


li 


TO   BKITISir   0]iK(f<JX. 


15 


being 

alive. '' 

"I  do 


le  area 

ated  to 

Lake, 

forni- 

Kocky 

lestone 

>pGcdy 

Milt  ob- 

point 


The  sea  of  Azof,  which  empties  into  the  Black  Sea,  forming  the 
eastern  border  of  the  Crimean  peninsula,  freezes  about  the  begin- 
ning of  November  and  seldom  opens  before  the  beginning  of  April. 
A  point  less  than  one  hundred  miles  north,  but  far  down  in  South- 
ern Russia,  namely,  Catherinoslav,  has  been  found  from  the  obser- 
vation of  many  years,  to  be  identical  in  sunnner  and  winter  climate 
with  Fort  Snelling,     Nine-tenths  of  European  Russia,  therefore — 
the  main  seat  of  population  and  resources — is  farther  north  than  St. 
Paul.     In  fact,  Pembina  is  the  climatic  erpiivalent  of  Moscow,  and 
for  that  of  St.  Petersburg,  (which  is  (iO  deg.  north,)  we  may  reason- 
ably go  to  latitude  55  dog.  on  the  American  continent.     Like  Eu- 
ropean Russia,  also,  the  Saskatchewan  district  has  a  climate  of  ex- 
tremes— the  thermometer  having  a  wide  range;  but  it  is  well  un- 
derstood that  the  growtli  of  the  cereals  and  of  the  most  useful  vege- 
tables depends  chrelly  on  the  intensity  and  duration  of  the  summer 
heats,  and  is  comparatively  little  inlhiencedby  the  severity  of  winter 
cold,  or  lowness  of  the  mean  temperature  during  the  year.     Tliere- 
fore,  it  is  important  to  observe  that  the  northern  shore  of  Lake 
Huron  has  the  mean  summer  lieat  of  Bordeaux,  in  Southern  France, 
namely  TO  deg.  Farenheit,  while  Cumberland  House,  in  latitude  54 
deg.  longitude  102,  on  the  Saskatcliev^^an,  exceeds,  in  this  respect, 
Brussels  and  Paris      The  United  States  Armv  Meteorological  Reg- 
ister  has  ascertained  tliat  tlie  line  of  TO  deg.  mean  summer  heat 
crosses  the  Hudson  river  at  West  Point,  thence  descends  to  the 
latitude  of  Pittsburg,  but  westward  is  traced  through  Sandusky. 
Chicago,  Fort  Snelling,  and  Fort  Union,  into  British  America.    Tlie 
average  annual  heat  at  Quebec  is  experienced  as  far  north  as  lati- 
tude 52  deg.  in  tlie  Saskatchewan  country.     Mr.  Lorin  Blodget,  of 
Washington,  (who  has  published  a  comprehensive  work  upon  the 
climatology  of  the  United  States)asserts  that  there  is  a  rai>id  increase 
of  heat  in  going  westward,  on  a  line  of  latitude  from  points  in  Min- 
nesota, and  this  even  where  the  elevation  increases.     "  It  is  warm- 
er," he  says,  "  at  Fort  Benton  on  the  Missouri,  in  latitude  llQi  deg. 
west,  and  latitude  4TA  deg.  north  for  every  season,  than  at  St.  Paul, 
Minnesota.     The  mean  winter  temperature  at  Fort  Benton  is  25  dog., 
c    1  tlie  same  as  that  of  Chicago,  Toronto,  Albany,  and  Portland, 
Maine.     At  St.  Paul  it  is  but  15  deg.,  or  10  deg.  less  ;  it  is  not  so 

cold  as  this  on  the  main  (south)  brancli  of  tiie  Saskatchewan." 
Mr.  Blodgett  claims  that  not  only  is  the  vicinit;    of  the  south 

brancli  of  the  Saskatchewan  as  mild  in  climate  as  St.  Paul,  but  the 
north  branch  of  that  river  is  almost  equally  favorable,  and  that  tlie 

ameliorating  influence  of  the  Pacific,  through  the  gorges  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  is  so  far  felt  on  Mackenzie  River,  that  wheat  may 
be    grown  in  its  valley  nearly  to  the  sixty-fifth  parallel. 


■"  i^ 


h 


1\ 


1 


16 


NOKTII-WEKTEKN    KOITTE 


1?;i ' 


'! 


il, 


lli 


i 


The  IbrcgoiMg  details  liave  been  protlnced  to  exhibit  the  general 
features  ami  advantages  of  the  country  which  extends  between 
Minnesota  and  the  g(jid  region  of  tlie  North  Pacific.  It  now  re- 
mains to  arrange  the  facts  rehitive  to  the  journey  thither 
by  the  route  of  rcnibina  and  the  Saslcatclicwan.  To  do  so,  tlit 
committee  propose  to  compile  from  an  overland  journey  of  Sir 
George  Simpson',  (rDvernor  of  Hudson  Bay  Company,  which  w^as 
published  in  ISIT,  whatever  facts  may  throw  light  upon  the  expe- 
rience of  a  traveller  over  the  same  route. 

The  journey  from  St.  Paul  to  Pembina  is  familiar  to  all.  From 
Pembinato  the  junction  of  Mouse  Kivcr  with  the  Assineboin,  there 
is  a  well  defined  track  over  a  plain,  such  as  Sir  George  Simpsox 
describes  on  the  way  to  the  same  point  from  Fort  Garry.  Under 
date  of  July  od,  he  says  :  "On  the  east,  north  and  south,  there  was 
not  a  mound  or  tree  to  vary  the  vast  expanse,  of  green  sward, 
while  to  the  A^est  (it  would  be  to  the  north  of  our  advancing  par- 
ty) was  the  gleaming  bay*  of  tiic  Assineboin,  separated  from  each 
other  by  wooded  points  of  considerable  depth." 

Gov.  SiMPso.v,  with  relays  of  horses,  made  the  journey  from  Fort 
Garry  to  Edmonton  in  thirteen  days,  about  fortysix  miles  per  day. 
Commencing  with  his  diary  of  the  third  day  from  Fort  Garrj',  (at 
the  point  where  a  party  from  Pembina  would  intersect  his  trail) 
such  extracts  Avill  be  made  as  embody  useful  information  : 

Juhi  5. — "On  lesuming  our  journey  we  passed  among  tolerably 
well  wooded  hills,  while  on  either  side  of  us  lay  a  constant  succes- 
sion of  small  lakes,  some  of  them  salt,  which  abounded  in  wild 
fowl.  In  the  neighborhood  of  these  waters  the  pasture  was  rich 
and  luxuriant ;  and  we  traversed  two  fields,  for  so  they  might  be 
termed,  of  the  rose  and  the  sweet  briar.  On  reaching  the  summit 
of  the  hills  that  bounded  the  pretty  valley  of  the  llapid  River,  we 
descried  an  encampment,  which  proved  lodges  of  Saultcaux  In- 
dians. We  spent  an  hour  in  fording  the  stream."  No  assistance 
from  the  Indians,  but  unmolested  by  them. 

July  t). — A  good  supper  of  wild  fowl,  which  was  very  numerous 
in  the  small  lakes  still  along  the  route — a  large  salt  hike — hilly 
and  well  wooded  district — complaints  of  musquitoes. 

Jiilif  7. — Passed  Bird's  Tail  Creek,  a  rapidly  flowing  tributary  of 
the  Assineboin — beyond  this  stream  an  undulating  prairie  of  vast 
extent — bauds  of  anteUiiies — ferried  over  the  Assineboin  to  Fort 
Ellice  in  a  lattean,  swimming  the  liorseS' — leaving  the  Fort,  passed 
through  a  swampy  wood,  forded  the  Qu'appelle  or  Calling  River, 
and  surmounting  a  steep  hill,  encamped  on  a  level  meadow  of  sev- 
eral thrtusand  acres  in  extent. 


i 


TO    BKITISH   OltEGoN. 


ir 


each 


July  8. — Extensive  piairies,  studded  witii  clumps  of  trees — con- 
siderable iucouvenience  with  regard  to  provisions  from  h:at  of  the 
weather — antehjpes  in  sight — in  the  afternoon  tlie  country  swampy 
and  beset  with  underwood. 

July  1). — Prairie  harder  and  more  open;  grass  withering  under 
recent  drouth;  more  antelopes;  circuit  of  a  swamp  near  Broken 
Arm  llivor,  losing  alow  hours. 

July  10. — Forded  White  Sand  Kiver  with  the  mud  up  to  the  bel- 
lies of  the  horses;  hitherto  weather  dry,  clear  and  warm,  but  a  cold 
rain  fell  afternoon  and  night. 

July  11. — During  the  night  a  serenade  hy  the  wolves  and  foxes; 
an  early  start  and  a  glimpse  of  an  object  eagerly  looked  for,  the 
Butte  aux  Chiens,  towering  with  a  hightof  about  four  hundred  feet 
over  a  boundless  prairie  as  level  and  smooth  as  a  pond,  evidently 
once  the  bed  of  a  lake,  with  the  Dog-knoll  as  an  islet  in  the  centre, 
and  which  was  covered  with  an  alluvial  soil  of  great  fertility.  On 
leaving  the  Dog-knoll,  the  party  traversed  about  twenty  miles  of 
prairie  among  several  large  and  beautiful  lakes.  The  cavalcade 
now  consisted,  in  all,  of  nineteen  persons,  fifty  horses,  and  six  carts 
with  the  following  order  of  march.  The  guide  was  followed  by 
four  or  five  horsemen  to  beat  a  track;  then  came  the  carts,  each 
with  a  driver,  and  lastly  followed  the  unmounted  animals  under  the 
charge  of  the  rest  of  the  party. 

July  12. — Followed  for  twenty  miles,  the  shore  of  "Lac  Sale," 
having  waters  as  briny  as  the  Atlantic,  The  most  curious  circum- 
stance with  respect  to  these  saline  lakes,  is,  that  they  are  often 
separated  from  fresh  water  only  by  a  narrow  belt  of  land.  For 
three  or  four  days  the  soil  had  been  absolutely  manured  with  the 
dung  of  tlje  buflalo,  but  the  animal  had  not  been  met. 

July  13. — March  till  ten  o'clDck  in  a  soaking  rain.  In  the  after- 
noon, "traveled  a  long  distance  through  a  picturesque  country, 
crossing  the  end  of  an  extensive  lake,  whose  gently  sloping  banks 
of  green  sward  were  covered  with  thick  woods."  Here  the  party 
fell  upon  the  trail  o^  emigrants  from  Red  River  to  Columhia,  and  then 
followed  the  well  beaten  track  made  by  them  for  both  horses  and 
carts. 

July  14. — Under  this  date  we  annex  a  considerable  extract: 

"In  this  part  of  the  country  we  saw  many  sorts  of  birds,  geese, 
loons,  pelicans,  ducks,  cranes,  two  kinds  of  snipe,  hawks,  owls  and 
gulls;  but  they  were  all  so  remarkably  shy  that  we  were  con- 
strained to  admire  them  from  a  distance.  In  the  afternoon  we 
traversed  a  beautiful  country  with  lofty  hills  and  long  valleys, 
full  of  sylvan  lakes,  while  the  bright  green  of  the  surface,  as  far  as 
2 


!l 


!  ' 


4 


;.^i 


18 


XOKTIl-WKSTEEN    ROUTE 


the  eye  could  reach,  assuincd  a  foreig'ii  tinge,  uiulcr  an  iiinnter- 
rnpttMl  profusion  of  roses  and  blue-bells.  On  the  summit  of  one  of 
these  hills  we  commanded  one  of  the  few  extensive  prospects  we 
liad  of  late  enjnv?>(l.  One  rang-e  of  hifjhts  rose  behind  another,  each 
becomin^;  faintir  as  it  receded  from  the  eye,  till  the  farthest  was 
blended  in  alm.»st  undistini,''uishable  confusion  with  the  clouds, 
while  the  softest  vales  sin-ead  a  panorama  of  hang'injj  copses  and 
glitterinj:^  lakes  at  our  feet." 

Jidy  15. — The  travelers  had  now  reached  the  Bow  Kiver,  or  the 
south  branch  of  the  Sa^vatchewan,  "which,"  says  Simpson,  "takes 
its  rise  in  the  Eocky  Mountains  near  the  international  frontier, 
and  is  of  considerable  size,  withuut  any  impeilim(>nt  of  any  mo- 
ment. *  *  *  At  the  crossinj^  place  the  Bow  liiver  was  about 
a  third  of  a  mile  in  width,  with  a  strong-  current,  and  some  twenty 
miles  below,  falls  into  the  main  Saskatchewan,  Avhence  the  two 
streams  flow  toward  Lake  Winnipeg',  forminj^  at  their  mouth  the 
Grand  Rapids  of  about  three  miles  in  leng'th," 

A  smart  ride  of  four  or  five  hours  from  the  Bow  River  through  a 
country  very  much  resembling  an  Eng-lish  Park,  brought  the  party 
to  Fort  Carlton,  on  the  Saskatchewan — latitude  53  deg.  longitude- 
108  dcg. 

"  The  Saskatchewan,"  remarks  Gov.  Simpson,  "  is  here  upward 
of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide,  presenting,  as  its  name  implies,  a  swift 
current.  It  is  navigable  for  boats  from  the  Rocky  Mountain  House, 
in  longitude  116,  to  Lake  Winnipeg,  upwards  of  seven  hundred 
miles  in  a  direct  line,  but  by  the  actual  course  of  the  stream,  nearly 
double  that  distance.  Though,  above  Edmonton,  the  river  is  much 
obstructed  by  rapid?.,  yet  from  that  Fort  to  Lake  Winnipeg-,  it  is 
descended  without  a  portag-e  alike  by  boats  and  canoes,  while  even 
on  the  upward  voyage,  the  oul;-  break  iii  the  navig-ation  is  the 
Grand  Rapids,  already  mentioned."' 

Juhj  11. — After  forty-eig'ht  hours  at  Fort  Carlton,  Gov.  Simpson's 
party  resumed  its  journey  along  the  north  ur  Ictt  bardc  of  the  Sas- 
katchewan. The  first  day's  route  "  lay  over  a  liilly  countr}'  so 
picturesque  in  its  character  that  almost  every  commanding"  posi- 
tion presented  the  elements  of  a  picturesque  pauuraina." 

Juhj  18. — The  hottest  day — inconvenience  fmm  thirst — encamped 
at  9  P.  M.  on  a  large  lake. 

Jidy  19. — Overtook  the  emigrants  to  the  Cnlumbia.  In  tljis  con^ 
nexion  so  many  particulars  of  interest  are  given  that  we  make  a 
liberal  extract. 

"  These  emigrants  consisted  of  agriculturists  and  others,  princi- 
pally natives  of  Red  River  Settlement.     Theie  were  twenty-thre.e 


I 


w 


TO  niiiTisir  ouE(;(>N". 


ID 


families,  the  heads  boin,i?  generally  yuun<^  and  active,  thouj^h  a  few 
of  them  were  advanced  in  life,  mijre  [)articularly  one  poor  woman, 
upwards  of  seventy-five  years  of  ag-e,  who  was  tottering  after  her 
son  to  his  new  home.  This  venerable  wanderer  was  a  native  of 
the  Saskatchewan,  (jf  which,  in  fact,  she  bore  the  name.  She  had 
been  absent  from  this,  the  land  of  her  birth,  Wn-  eighteen  years; 
and  on  catching  the  first  glimjjse  oi'  the  river  from  the  hill  near 
Carlton,  shi.',  under  the  inilueuce  of  old  recollections,  burst  into  a 
violent  flood  of  tears.  During  the  two  days  that  the  party  spent 
at  the  Fort,  she  scarcely  ever  left  the  baidv  of  the  stream,  appear- 
ing to  regard  it  with  as  much  veneration  as  the  Hindoo  regards 
the  Ganges.  As  a  contrast  to  this  superannuated  daughter  of  the 
Saskatchewan,  the  band  contained  several  very  young  travelers, 
who  had,  in  fact,  made  their  ai)pearance  in  this  world  since  t'le 
commencement  of  the  journey. 

"  Each  family  had  two  or  three  carts,  together  with  bauds  of 
horses,  cattle  and  dogs.  The  men  and  lads  traveled  in  the  saddle, 
while  the  vehicles,  which  were  covered  with  awnings  against  the 
sun  and  rain,  carried  the  women  and  young  children.  As  they 
marched  in  single  file,  their  cavalcade  extended  above  a  mile  in 
length,  and  we  increased  the  length  of  the  column  by  marching  in 
compan3^  The  emigrants  were  all  healthy  and  happy,  living  in 
the  greatest  abundance,  and  enjoying  the  journey  with  the  highest 
relisl^. 

"  Before  coming  up  with  these  people,  we  had  seen  evidence  of 
the  comfortable  state  of  their  commissariat,  in  the  shape  of  two  or 
three  still  warm  buffaloes,  from  which  only  the  tongues  and  a  few 
other  choice  bits  had  been  taken.  The  spectacle  gav^  us  hope  of 
soon  seeing  the  animals  ourselves,  and  accordingly  it  was  not  long 
before  we  saw  our  game  on  either  side  of  the  road,  grazing  or 
stalking  about  in  bands  of  between  twenty  and  a  hundred,  to  the 
number  of  about  five  thousand  in  all." 

July  20. — The  first  complaint  of  the  scarcity  of  water — only  one 
supply,  from  Turtle  River,  during  thirty-six  hours.  Game  abundant, 
buffalo,  bearer  and  deer,  besides  wolves,  badgers  and  foxes.  Re- 
turned to  the  immediate  valley  of  the  Saskatchewan,  reaching  Fort 
Pitt  about  dark. 

Jidi/  21.  Crossed  to  south  bank  of  the  Saskatchewan  and  trav- 
eled about  thirty  miles  through  bolder  scenery  than  ibr-nerly.  At 
night,  first  apprehensions  of  Indians  expressed,  by  hobbling  horses 
and  mounting  guard. 

July  22.  Xo  water  till  eleven  o'clock,  and  again,  in  the  after- 
noon, passed  over  a  perfectly  arid  plain  of  about  twenty-five  miles 


fii     I 


90 


NOIITFI-WKSIEUN    ItOUTE 


■;f 


il- 


if 


hi 


^iii 


in  long-tli ;  cncanipoil  for  tlio  night  at  tlio  coiiiiiioncoment  of  the 
Chaine  ties  Lacs,  a  succession  of  small  lakes,  strotching  over  a 
distance  of  twenty  or  thirty  njilos.  The  journal  adds,  "  During 
the  afternoon  we  saw  our  first  raspberries  ;  they  proved  to  be  of 
large  size  and  fine  flavor.  Two  days  previous  we  had  feasted  on 
the  service  berry,  or  mis-as-quitoniica — a  sort  of  a  cross  between 
the  cranberry  and  the  black  currant,  and  Ijefore  leaving  lied  Kivcr 
we  had  found  wild  strawberries  ripe." 

Ju/ij  2o. — "  Encamped  on  the  confines  of  an  extensive  forest,  a 
tongue  of  which,  stretching  away  to  the  northward,  is  knovrn  as 
La  Grand  Pointe.  Li  the  afternoon  we  had  come  upon  a  large  bed 
of  the  eye-berry,  or  oos-<iuisiko()mina,  very  nearly  resembling  the 
strawberry  in  taste  and  appearance.  It  grows  abundantly  in 
Eussia  ;  and  nourishing  as  it  does  in  the  same  soils  and  situations 
as  the  strawberry,  it  would  doubtless  thrive  in  England."  Nights 
chilly,  dews  heavy. 

Juli/  23. — I'eached  Edmonton  House.  Li  the  vicinity  is  an  ex- 
tended plain,  covered  with  a  luxuriant  crop  of  the  vetch  or  wild 
pea,  almost  as  nutritious  a  food  for  cattle  and  horses  as  oats.  The 
Saskatchewan  here  is  nearly  as  wide  as  at  Carlton,  while  the  im- 
mediate banks  arc  well  wooded,  and  the  country  ))ehind  consists 
of  rolling  prairies.     Coal  is  also  found  in  its  banks. 

Gov.  Simpson's  further  route  was  along  the  eastern  base  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  to  the  sources  of  the  Bow  River,  or  South 
Saskatchewan,  whence  he  crossed  to  the  head  waters  of  the  McGil- 
livray  or  Flat  Bow  River.  He  left  his  carts  at  Edmonton,  making 
the  journey  to  Fort  Colville  with  pack  horses;  but  a  part^-  destined 
to  Frazer  and  Thompson  Rivers,  would  find  a  direct  route,  but  not 
for  wagons,  through  the  Athabasca  Portage  to  the  Boat  Encamp- 
ment on  the  Upper  Columbia.  This  pass  is  between  Mount  Hooker 
and  Mount  Brown,  and  on  its  divide  a  small  lake,  called  on  some 
maps  "Committee's  Punch  Bowl,"  sends  its  tribute  from  one  end  to 
the  Columbia,  and  from  the  other  to  the  Mackenzie. 

A  witness  before  the  Parliamentary  Committee,  Mr.  John  Mn.es 
states  that  from  the  Boat  Encampment  it  is  "  two  days  level  walk," 
on  the  head  of  the  Columbia,  before  reaching  the  mountain,  "  a 
goods  days  walk  and  hard  work  too"  to  reach  its  summit,  and  three 
days  before  getting  out  of  the  mountain  ridge  altogether.  It  seems 
reasonable  to  suppose  from  this  testimony  that  a  party  might 
traverse  the  Rocky  Mountains  from  Edmonton  House,  to  the  head- 
waters of  Thompson  River  in  about  twelve  days. 

The  Committee  compute  the  distance  from  St.  Paul  to  the  eastern 
border  of  the  Gold  Mines  to  be  1,650  miles,  as  follows  : 


n 
t^ 
c 


w 


im- 


TO    nUITF.SlI    OliKCJON.  21 

St.  Paul  to  Poiubiiiii, j,"iO  inllcs. 

I'eiiiliina  to  Carlton  Tfonso, 000      " 

CiiiHoii  lloutif  to  r']ilmoMton, 100       " 

Edmonton  to  Tliomiisun  lU ver, lioo       ' ' 

l.tiuO       " 

They  estliiiato,  in  view  of  tlio  facilities  ulforded  by  the  faco  of 
the  country,  mkI  a  contiuiioiis  line  of  Iliid.son  Jiay  Company's 
posts,  tliat  this  joiu'noy  can  bo  acconiplishod  in  novcnty  days. 

What  outfit  will  be  rofjuisitu  and  the  facilities'  for  fsui»piy,  at  St. 
Paul,  will  be  the  subject  of  auotlier  report. 

Res[)ectfully  submitted. 

On  motion,  the  forcg'oin.t^  report  was  accepted  and  adoi)tcd. 

KUSIXESS   P.ErOUT. 

Col.  John'  II.  Stevexs,  of  Gleucoc,  presented  the  followinj^  report: 
The  distance  from  St.  Taul  to  the  gold  mines  of  Frailer  and  Thomp- 
son Kivers,  may  be  put  down  as  follows: 

St.  Paul  to  Pembina 4-"0  miles. 

I'cmbina  to  Carlton  House 000     " 

Carlton  to  lAhiionton 400     " 

Edmonton  to  Boat  Kncaini)ni(;nt loO     " 

Boat  Enciiniiimcnt  to  Thoiupson  Kivcr .TO     " 

l,ljo0  miles. 
Making'  a  total  distance  of  1,G50  miles  from  St.  J'aul.  The  Com- 
mittee have  made  the  following  estimate  of  the  expense  necessary 
to  equip  and  lit  out  a  party  of  ten  from  St.  Paul.  They  have  in- 
cluded in  the  estimate  suillcient  food  for  six  months. 

10  Lbls.  Flour,  cost  $4  per  bid $  40 

6     "     Pork,       '■    S18"    "    00 

4o0  lbs.   Sugar       "  ol 

40    "      Tea  "     COc  "    "    24 

Sundries 100 

Powder  and  Lead 100 

10  prs.  Blankets 100 

Tools  and  implements 100 

Teams  and  vehicles 1000 

S1,G08 
The  foregoing  report  was  accepted  and  adopted. 
Hon.  Mahtin  McLeod  presented  the  following  resolutions,  which 
were  unanimously  adopted: 

RESOLUTTOXS. 

Resolved,  That  the  overland  emigration  to  British  Oregon,  at- 
tracted by  the  gold  discovery  on  Frazer  and  Thompson  Rivers,  will 


m 


;  I 


Ihr 


22  NoKTIl-WEfiTKKX    KOCTK 

find  Miiiiii'.sfjta  the  most  desirable  iioint  ordt'idutiUL'  iind  wupidy  fur 
the  fiiUowni^"  rcusons: 

FiHST,  Tho  eiiii<^r<'iut  liiis  the  choice  of"  three  routes,  fur  more  ousy 
and  direct  than  any  south  of  St.  I'aul,  to  wit:  (1)  J5y  renibina, 
Carlton,  Kdinonton,  Athabasca  I'ortaj^o  and  tlie  Boat  Encampment 
on  th(!  Columbia.  (2)  liy  the  South  Saskatchewan  and  the  Koota- 
iiais  Pass  to  Fort  Oolville;  and  (:J)  liy  Gov.  Stevens'  well  known 
Rail  lload  route  on  the  American  side  of  the  international  boundary. 

Second,  Either  of  these  routes  has  more  water,  timber  and<;^am«, 
and  is  less  difficult,  than  those  which  start  from  the  Missouri  Kiver. 

TniHD,  Supplies  of  all  kinds  arc  very  cheap  in  Minnesota 

FouuTH,  Faithful  jj;'uides  and  attendants  are  easily  obtained  on 
our  frontiers,  and  in  the  territory  of  the  Hudson  Bsiy  Company. 

Fifth,  There  is  no  dan'y,'er  of  molestation  from  Indians  on  these 
Northern  routes. 

Resolved,  That  the  citizens  of  Minnesota  will  join  heartily  with 
the  people  of  Canada  in  the  jjolicy  of  colonizing"  the  Western  dis- 
tricts of  British  America,  which  is  about  to  be  established  ;  and 
that  relations  of  reciprocal  trade  with  the  United  States,  if  not  now 
existinj^,  should  bo  extended  over  that  region  of  North  America. 

licsolvcd,  That  (nir  citizens  be  urged  to  encourage  the  formation 
of  parties  over  cither  of  the  routes  above  designated. 

A  committee,  consisting  of  Messrs.  Martin'  McLkod,  Norman*  W. 
KiTTsox,  A.  F.  McDonald,  Alexander  Eamsey,  and  K.  C.  Murphy, 
were  appointed,  and  requested  to  report  at  an  adjourned  meeting 
to  be  held  at  the  Hall  of  Representatives,  on  Saturday,  July  10,  at 
4  o'clock  p.  M.,  upon  the  relations  of  the  Red  River  settlements  to 
Minnesota,  the  nature  and  extent  of  their  commerce  with  our  citi- 
zens, and  the  facilities  thereby  aflforded  for  an  overland  communi- 
cation with  British  Oregon. 

After  remarks  by  Messrs.  McLeod  and  Stevens,  the  meeting  ad- 
journed to  the  Hall  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  on  Saturday, 
July  10,  at  4  p.  jr. 


I 


I 


m 


■( 


SECOND  "ADJOURNED  MEETING  IN  THE  HALL  OF  THE 
HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES,  AT  ST.  PAUL,  JULY 
10,  1858. 

A  large  assembly  convened  as  above,  at  4  o'clock,  p.  m.  Long 
before  the  organization  of  the  meeting,  groups  were  engaged  in 
the  examination  of  maps,  which  were  suspended  upon  the  walls 


for 


I 


To    lililTISII    OUi;(,()X. 


23 


[ov  tlio  sake  of  g'ou^riipliical  illuHti'ation.  One  was  a  liir;^o  map, 
publiNhod  from  tlie  Laiitl  Ollico  of  Caiiaila,  H[)nii  wliicli  both  the 
nortlicrii  and  southern  SaHkatclicwan  routes  were  delineated. 
Elsewhere,  Culton',s  Map  of  the  L'liitcd  States  was  suspended,  with 
a  scheme  often  States  between  Minnesota  and  th(!  I'acilic,  marked 
with  colors  and  described  by  names,  and  which  was  a  part  of  a 
plan  for  the  subdivision  of  all  the  present  territ(n'y  of  the  Union 
into  new  States.  A  map  of  the  <^lol)e  had  a  broad  red  line  drawn 
across  its  face  on  the  latitude  of  -43.^  degrees  north,  with  a  view 
of  cxhil)itin<^'  how  large  a  portion  of  the  Pacific  coast  and  of  Eu- 
rope lies  north  of  tho  southern  boundary  of  Minnesota. 

Tlie  Chair  was  (occupied  by  Col.  \Vm.  II.  Noble.     J.  A.  Wheelock, 
Es(i.,  acted  as  Secretary. 

The  Cha'rman  bri(!lly  referred  to  the  objects  of  the  meeting. 
.He  hatl  long  be<Mi  interested  in  tho  project  of  a  northern  route  to 
Califori.ia,  and  while  engaged  in  the  prosecution  of  an  enterprise, 
having  for  its  object  the  connection  of  the  head  waters  of  the  Mis- 
sissipiu  with  the  IJay  of  San  Francisco,  by  a  route  which  he  be- 
lieved to  have  advantages  over  all  others — his  attention  years  ago 
was  repeatedly  called  to  the  still  greater  advantages  of  the  more 
northern  route  terminating  at  the  magnificent  harborage  of  Puget 
Sound  ;  and  he  had  only  deferred  a  scheme  of  exploration  which 
was  long  since  proposed  to  him,  till  he  had  finished  his  engage- 
ments with  the  Government  on  the  California  route.  He  spoke  of 
the  interest  which  had  been  every  where  excited  by  tho  proceed- 
ings of  the  i)revi(jus  meetings  held  on  this  subject,  and  read  sev- 
eral letters  of  iiKjuiry  from  agents  of  parties  at  Chicago  and  else- 
where, who  wished  to  take  the  route  to  Frazer  Kiver  ;  and  in  con- 
clusion laid  before  the  meeting  tho  proposition  of  a  gentleman  to 
make  an  exploration  of  the  whole  route. 

Mr.  Martix  McLeod,  from  the  committee  appointed  at  a  previous 
mooting,  asked  leave,  (which  was  granted,)  instead  of  tho  special 
inquiry  referred  to  the  committee,  to  submit  the  following  report  : 

It  will  bo  recollected  that  at  the  mooting  hold  at  the  Fuller  House 
on  tho  7th  inst.,  a  resolution  was  passed  in  reference  to  the  choice 
of  three  routes  for  the  emigrant  road  from  St.  Paul  to  the  Frazer 
River  gold  mines  in  British  Oregon.  First,  by  Pembina,  Red  River 
Settlement  and  the  north  branch  of  tho  Saskatchewan.  Second, 
by  the  South  Saskatchewan  and  the  Kootauais  Pass.  Third,  by 
Gov.  Stevens'  railroad  route  on  the  American  side  of  the  interna- 
tional boundary.  * 

For  tho  practical  information  of  those  desirous  of  undertaking 
itlie  journey,  I  have  hastily  prepared  some  brief  notes  gathered 


I,       I 


m 


24 


NOKTH-WKSTKKN    liOl'IK 


■tt 


n 


■k 


from  tlio  journals  of  voyuf^nti^-  urul  scientific  parties  of 'exploration, 
by  viirious  routes,  tlu'oiij^'li  that  ro^'ion. 

For  a  small  i)arty  of  ten  to  fifteen  persons  hastily  gotUai  )ip,  the 
Stevens  route  apt)oars  to  be  the  least  i'avoriible  of  the  throe  routes 
not  only  as  to  distance,  Imt  also  as  to  the  features  of  the  country, 
character  and  numlwu-  of  the  Indian  iribes  throu.c^h  which  they 
would  nnavoidaldy  hav(!  to  jtass.  The  distance  from  St.  I'aiil  to 
Vancouver  on  the  Columbia  is  l,S<t4  miles,  to  ^oatthj,  a  port  on  the 
east  side  of  Pu^^et  Sound,  by  the  Coliiml)ia  route,  two  thousand 
twenty-ilve  miles,  1,152  miles  of  which  is  throuf^li  an  uncultivablo 
rcj^ion,  alfordin^i;  but  little  f^ame,  at  uncertain  seasons,  and  at  it. 
late  season  not  a  sulliciency  of  j^rass  for  atiimals.  We  will  I'len 
dis|>oso  of  this  route,  vvitli  tiie  rcMuark  that  hovvev(.'r  practic.ible  or 
desiraljle  it  may  be — as  heini^'-  all  within  our  own  boundary — for  a 
lar;i;e  and  stron.u;'  party,  leavin,:^''  St.  Paul  not  later  than  the  15th  of 
May,  it  cauu(>t  be  rccnmmendeil  I'or  a  small  [)arty  startirifi;  from 
here  at  a  lat(!  season.  We  have  tiien  th<'  cli()ic(>  of  the  two  routes 
by  the  Saskatchewan,  and  to  j^ive  somothin*^  lik<i  a  correct  idea  of 
that  re,!^'ion,  and  the  features  <-  f  tiie  rout<'S  usually  tr;iv<!lled  by  the: 
voya;j^eurs  of  tlu;  Hudson  Uay  (Company,  1  will  ipiote  from  the  Jour- 
nal of  an  expedition  by  tlw;  (b)luml>iii,  up  tiiat  river  by  its  nerth 
branch,  thence  to  the  tributaries  of  the  SaskiitclKiwan,  and  down 
that  stream  and  the  valley  by  water,  and  by  land  to  ]?as  de  la  Uiv- 
iero,  .'I,  day's  journey  from  Fort  ^^birr^',  lied  Riv('r  Setthnnent. 

The  i)arty  started  on  the  Ith  ol"  April,  IVom  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Columbia,  which  tliey  ascended  in  can(jes.  On  the  10th  ol 
May  th(>y  lirst  ^ot  sifjht  of  the  Kocky  Mountains,  and  sent  forward 
a  piirty  to  procure  horses  ivuil  supplies  from  the  eiist  side.  From 
the  west  base  of  the  mountains  they  travelled  on  foot,  carrying 
packs  of  lifty  pounds  each,  includiri;^-  tluiir  [)rovisioi!S,  wliieh  con- 
sisted of  i)oun(h.'d  corn  brou,t!;lit  IVoin  the  Columljia,  aiid  ])enunican, 
found  in  a  cn/ie.  Helbi'e,  ho\v(!\cr,  they  commenced  ttieir  foot 
march,  and  after  leavinji;  the  Cohunbia,,  they  ascended  for  some 
distance  a  small  stream  called  Canoo  River,  from  the  fact  that  it 
WHS  upon  its  itanks  the  lirst  canoc-s  were  constructed  which  de* 
scended  to  the  Pacific  ;  distance  by  Arrowsmith's  map,  twelve 
hundred  mihis.  •; 

Their  march  thron{,W»  the  passes  of  the  mountains  commenced  on 
the  14th  of  i\Iay,  and  "was  very  fatig-uin--  in  coTiseipience  of  the 
depth  of  the  snow;  on  either  side  were  inunense  ghuticu's  of  ice- 
bound rocks,  on  whi.'h  the  rays'  (»f  the  settin*:,-  sun  rellecb;d  the 
most  beautifid  prismatic  colors.  One  of  those  peaks  was  like  a 
fortress  of  rock  ;    it  rose  eighteen  iiundred  feet  perpendicularly 


Th 


i 


TO    IMMTISIf    OliKfiON. 


tion, 


i 


above  tlio  rnoimtain  lakcH,  and  had  its  suinniit  (;()Vorcd  witli  ico." 
The  party  h«!r<!  pasKcd  luiar  two  hikcH  not  more  than  IJOO  or  400 
yards  in  circuit,  and  200  yards  apart..  "Canoo  liivor  takes  its  rise 
in  one  of  them,  llowiiif^  westward  into  tlio  Coliirrd)ia  ;  while  the 
other  hike  ^ives  l)irlli  to  one  of  tlie  hranciies  of  tli(;  Athabasca, 
whicli  runs  (irst  (;astward,  tJien  northward,  and  which,  a.'ter  its 
.junction  with  the  Unjej^liah  iKjrtii  of  tiie  Lake  of  the  Mountains, 
takf.'S  tlie  name  of  Shive  Jiiver  as  far  as  Shive  Tiake,  and  afterward 
tliat  of  Mackenzie  lliver,  until  it  (Mupties  into  the  Frozen  Ocean. 
On  the  15thof  i\Iay  tiujy  be^.f'aM  to  des(!end  the  eastern  declivities 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  encamped  under  some  cypress  trees, 
the  common  timljer  \h','\u<i;  stunted  pine  md  ccflar.  As  a  strikin;^- 
.I'ontrast  on  the  western  sich;,  tii(j  hill  t(  Is  •were;  covered  with  im- 
mense forests,  mostly  of  N(jrway  [)ine  aiifocedars  of  !i  |)rodij.;'ions 
size,  "nth  May,  en(!ami)ed  on  tlu;  mitin^  of  a  verdant  plain 
called  by  the  ^uide  (Joro  J.'rairie.  l.Stli—lofided  hoi'ses  and  shot 
seven  wild  ducks,  reached  liocky  Mountain  JIoiisc!,  situated  on  the 
shore  (jf  a  little  Iak(!  in  the  midst  of  a  wood,  surroundiMl,  except  on 
the  water  side,  by  steep  rocks,  inhabittjd  by  mountain  sheep  and 
;?oats.  From  here  is  seen  in  the  west  tlu;  chain  of  the  liocky 
Mountains  <;overed  with  perp(!tual  snow." 

"  I'eoph.' so  often  sp((ak  of  the  Rocky  Afountains  that  1  desire 
here  to  sny  a  lew  words  c)n  that  subject.  They  extend  nearly  in  a 
straij^ht  line  fiom  the  .'Joth  [)arallel  to  the  mouth  of  Mack(!n/i(; 
River,  in  Wui  Arctii-,  in  latitude;  about  'i.^)  de.t!;.  north.  'J'his  dis- 
tance, 30  dct?.  of  latitude,  e<|uivalerit  to  2,200  .nihis,  is,  howfwer, 
only  the  mean  side  of  a  ri;^ht-an,i;led  trian;.,''le,  the  base  of  which 
occupies  2(5  dej^.  of  lont^'itude,  in  latitu''e  o.O  de^.  or  3r»  de^i;.,  that 
is  to  say,  about  1,()00,  while  the  chain  of  mountains  from  the  hy- 
poth(!nus(.',  so  that  tlu;  ical,  and  as  it  w(!re,  dia^^'onal  lcn;^'th  of  the 
chain  across  the  C(jntinent  is  nearly  ;i,000  miles  from  southeast  to 
northwest.  In  such  a  vast  e.Kt(;ntof  mountains,  the  ])<!r[)endicnlar 
liei,L';lit  and  width  of  base  must  Ixs  \'i:,vy  uiUMpial.  Tlu;  party  were 
eight  days  in  erossin".;;  them,  wIkmicc  I  conclude  from  our  rate  of 
travel,  that  they  huva  at  this  point,  about  latitude  /)4  dejj^.,  a  base 
of  200  miles — with  an  altitude;  of  about  (J.OOO  feet  above  the  sea," 
while  the  real  heij^^-ht  of  the  Rocky  A[ountaiMs,  as  since  ascertain- 
ed, a\era^'e  12,000  feet,  the  iiif^hest  known  peak  being  10,000 
feet. 

From  the  mountains  the  party  descended  in  canoes  fastened  to- 
gether, and  on  the  1st  of  June  reacheil  tlu;  coidluenco  of  the  river 
Rend)ina,  which  Hows  from  the  south  and  takes  its  rise  in  a  spur 
of  the  Rocky  Mcjuntuins.     On  the  2nd  .fnno  they  reached  Slave 


I 


I  i 


Hit    1 


26 


NOKTII-WESTEKN   KOUTE 


X' 


i^^ 


lit; 


' '  > 


Lake  river — met  a  band  of  the  Kinisteneaux  wlio  had  just  killed 
a  buffalo,  which  they  sold  for  a  brass  kettle.  Passing  by  a  tortu- 
ous route  through  the  region  of  the  Red  Elk  and  Athabasca  rivers, 
which  were  obstructed  by  boulders,  some  of  the  party  had  to  take 
to  the  shore,  while  the  men  dragg'ed  along  the  canoe,  a  laborious 
and  tedious  operation  ;  and  so  on,  on  foot  and  in  canoes,  nntil 
they  reached  the  main  stream  of  the  Saskatchewan  on  the  Hth  of 
June 

"  This  river  ilows  over  a  bed  composed  of  sand  and  marl,   which 
contributes  not  a  little  to  diminish  the  purity  and  transparency  of 
its  waters,  which,  like  those  of  the  Missouri,  are  turbid  and  whi- 
tish; except  for  that,  it  is  one  of  the  grandest  rivers  in  the  world. 
The  banks  are  perfectly^  charming,  and  offer,  in  many  places,    9, 
scene  the  fairest,  the  (^,Q;)St  smiling,  the  best  diversified,  that  can 
be  beheld  or  imagined  ^„aills  in  rare   forms  crowned  with  superb 
groves,  valleys  agreeably  embowered,  and  embrowned  at  evening 
and  at  morning  by  the  prolonged  shadows  of  the  hills  and  of  the 
woods  which  adorn  them  ;  herds  of  light-limbed  antelopes  and  ma- 
jestic buffalo,  bounding  on  the  slopes  of  the  hills,  or  trampling  with 
ponderous  tread  the  verdure  of  the  plains  ;    all  these  chami)aigu 
beauties  retlected,  and  doubled,  as  it  were,  by  the  waters  of  the 
gently  gliding  river,  the  melodious  and  varied  songs  of  a  thousand 
birds,  perched  on  the  tree-tops,  the  J'efresiiiog  breath  of  the  balmy 
breeze,  the  serenity  of  the  sky,  the  purity  and  salubrity  of  the  air, 
all  in  a  word,  pours  contentment  and  joy  into  the   soul  of  the  on- 
chanted  spectator.     It  is  beyond  and  above  all,  in  the  morning 
when  the  sun  is  rising,  and  in  the  cvening,*when  he  i-s  setting,  that 
the  spectacle  is  really  ravishing.     I  ooukl  not  detach  my  regards 
from  that  superb  picture,  until  the  nascent  obscurity  had  oblitera- 
ted  its   perfection. "     Such   is  the  graphic  and  glowing  picture 
given  to  us  of  the  SaskatchcAvan  country,  by  one  of  the  earlier 
travelers,  and  as  it  lirst  presented  itself  to  the  eye  of  the  wander- 
er, the  experienced  voyageur,  and  practical  man. 

From  these  notes  it  appears  that  it  takes  thirty-eight  days  to 
ascend  the  Columbia,  eight  days  to  cross  the  Rocky  Mr  ntains, 
thence  aloug  and  across  numerous  rivulets  and  streams  northward 
to  the  Saskatchewan,  down  the  valley  of  that  river  and  through 
Lake  Winnipeg,  forty- one  days  more  ;  in  all,  eighty-seven  days  to 
Bas  de  la  Riviere,  near  the  Red  River  Settlement. 

When  we  take  into  con-^iidek-ation  the  difficulty  of  the  ascent  of 
the  Columbia,  and  the  tortuous  and  tardy  march  at  the  eastern  base 
of  the  mountains,  before  entering  the  main  valley  of  the  Saskatche- 
wan, we  are  forcibly  led  to  the  conclusion  thf  t  twenty  or  even 


TO    BRITISH    014KG0N. 


27 


killed 
tortu- 
ivers, 
take 
prious 
until 
th  of 


twenty-five  days  sliould  be  deducted  from  the  time  expended  on  the 
•whole  route.  That  length  of  time  would  be  amply  suflicient  for  a 
large  train  to  reach  Red  River  Settlement,  where  guides  and  hunters 
€0uld  be  procured  without  much  difficulty,  and  additional  supplies  of 
the  proper  kiml  uf  food,  such  as  pemmican,  biscuit  and  flour  could 
be  purchased  at  reasonable  rates.  American  horses  could  probably 
be  exchanged  for  Indian  ponies,  and  the  common  wooden  carts  of 
the  colony  obtained  for  the  jourziey  through  the  valley  of  Sas- 
katcliewan.  At  the  mountains  these  cheap  carts  should  be  aban- 
doned and  pack-saddles  substituted  ti»  cross  the  mountains  and 
complete  the  journey.  There  W(^uld  be  no  difficulty  in  ascertaining 
at  the  colony  which  of  these  two  routes  by  the  Saskatchewan 
would  be  the  preferable  one,  but  unless  we  have  come  to  erroneous 
conclusions,  and  have  been  misled  by  information  derived  from 
sources  which  we  believe  to  be  reliable  in  the  main,  we  think  the 
most  northern  route  will  be  found  the  most  practicable,  as  it  cer- 
tainly is  more  direct  than  the  one  by  the  Kootanais  Pass,  and  would 
not  exceed  in  length  the  estimate  made  at  our  former  meeting,  of 
1,650  miles  from  St.  Paul. 

Allowing  for  delays  auvl  difficulties  which  cannot  be  foreseen  in 
a  journey  of  such  length  through  a  country  comparatively  but 
little  known,  we  think  that  in  three  months  from  St.  Paul  a  large 
train  would  reach  the  gold  digging  region  near  Thompson  and 
Frazcr  Rivers.  A  small  train  would  in  all  reasonable  probability 
reach  there  in  seventy-five  days,  but  more  reliable  data,  on  wliich 
to  found  practical  conclusions  of  this  nature  so  very  desirable  now, 
would  doubtless  be  learned  at  the  colony  of  the  Red  River  settle- 
ment. 

(Xn  motion,  the  above  rep(jrt  was  unanimously  accepted  by  the 
meeting. 

Col.  JoHX  H.  Steven's,  of  Glencoe,  being  called  upon,  expressed 
the  opinion  that  the  Frazer  River  discovery  would  lead  to  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  interior  of  British  America,  which  would  make  the 
navigation  of  the  Red  and  Saskatchewan  Rivers  a  very  important 
commercial  fact.  IIow  few  appreciate  that  a  steamer  can  depart 
from  the  mouth  of  Sioux  Wood  River,  at  about  the  central  point  of 
the  AVestorn  l)oundary  of  Minnesota,  and  tlience  descend  a  dis- 
tance of  500  miles  to  Lake  Winnipeg,  then  pass  300  miles  through 
that  mighty  inland  sea  and  ascend  the  Saskatclicwan  to  the  base 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains — at  least  3,000  miles  of  inland  navigation, 
including  the  north  and  south  branches  of  the  Saskatchewan.  Ten 
days  of  slow  land  travel  suffice  to  connect  from  the  point  thus 
reached,  with  the  navigable  channel  of  the  Columbia  and  Boat  En- 


I 


*     ii 


If  ! 


28 


NOIITII-WESTEKN   KOUTE 


m. 


1  ■• ! ! 


hi 


YV 


iH 


campment,  AVhen,  in  addition  to  these  facts,  the  fertile  character 
of  the  immense  district  thus  drained,  and  the  measures  now  on  foot 
for  its  colonization  are  considered,  the  subject  rises  in  dignity  and 
importance  far  beyond  any  ordinary  scheme  of  exploration  and  oc- 
cupation. 

Not  a  town  or  farni  in  Minnesota  but  is  interested  in  bring-ing- 
prominently  before  the  emigration  of  Europe  and  America,  the  facta 
hitherto  so  unfamiliar  in  regard  to  the  western  portion  of  British 
America.  He  cordially  assented  to  the  suggestion  of  the  late 
meeting,  that  relations  of  reciprocity  should  at  once  be  established 
with  our  American  people.  Our  crops  were  to  be  abundant — our 
markets  are  cheap — our  merchants  can  furnish  a  full  outfit  at  rea- 
sonable prices;  and  he  entertained  no  doubt  that  the  towns  of  Min- 
nesota were  the  most  advantageous  points  for  departure  to  the 
Frazcr  and  Thompson  River  districts. 

Hon.  A.  Ramse}'-,  in  answer  to  a  call  by  the  meeting,  responded 
by  reminding  the  audience  that  it  is  in  the  recollection  of  men  now 
living',  when  all  the  trade  of  the  valleys  of  the  Ohio  and  Missis- 
sippi, was  carried  on  pack-horses  by  the  way  of  Fort  Pitt,  (now 
Pittsburgh,)  across  the  Alleghany  Mountains  to  Philadelphia. 

The  immense  region  west  of  the  Alleghanies  has,  in  the  period  of 
seventy-five  years,  grown  immensely.  The  business  which  at  that 
time  was  carried  on  by  this  primitive  mode  of  transportation,  now 
employs  a  greater  length  of  miles  of  railroad  and  a  larger  tunnage 
of  steaml)oats  than  all  the  rest  of  the  Union. 

The  immense  area  west  of  the  Red  River  and  south  of  tlie  Atha- 
basca, with  a  climate  not  inferior  tooin-  own,  is  capable,  according  to 
the  estimate  of  Lord  Selkirk,  founded  on  a  personal  observation  of 
the  Territory  in  question,  of  supporting  a  population  of  thirty  mil- 
lions, and  will  furnish  the  world  with  a  trade  not  much  inferior  to 
that  wJiich  now  passes  between  the  Atlantic  States  and  the  Valley 
of  the  Mississippi.  And,  Mr.  President,  this  is  a  trade  which  be- 
longs to  ns  in  Minnesota.  It  cannot  be  diverted  from  us.  The 
difficulties  and  the  cost  of  transportation  on  the  old  canoe  route 
along  Rainy  River,  which  has  heretofore  been  followed  by  the 
Hudson  Bay  Compan}'',  constitute  an  objection  against  that  chan- 
nel of  conununication,  which  becomes  irresistible  when  brought 
into  competition  with  the  innnensely  greater  facilities  of  commu- 
nication by  this  route. 

Accordingly,  sir,  we  every  year  witness  a  large  accession  of  our 
trade  from  this  (piarter — which  every  season  gathers  new  volume 
from  the  gradual  abandonment  of  the  old  routes  by  Superior  and 


TO    BRITISH    OREGON. 


29 


ij 


racter 
m  foot 
ty  and 
nd  oc- 


ii'>'in2: 


Hudson  Bay — to  pour  its  valuable  contril)uti(nis  into  our  market. 
And  as  illustrative  of  the  value  and  importance  of  this  trade  to  us, 
I  may  state  that  I  have  been  informed  by  our  worthy  Mayor,  Mr. 
Kittson,  who  is  perhaps  as  thoroug-hiy  acquainted  with  the  sta- 
tistics of  this  trade  as  any  man  in  Minnesota,  that  the  Red  lliver 
trains  of  this  season  will  have  brought  an  ag'grej^ate  of  $100,000  in 
money  and  an  equal  amount  in  furs  to  the  trade  of  this  city,  and 
this,  sir,  it  is  easy  to  foresee,  is  but  the  germ  of  a  trade  which  at 
no  distant  day,  will  g-ive  to  the  waters  of  the  Northern  Mississippi 
the  commercial  position  now  enjoyed  by  those  of  Lake  Michig-an. 

Let  us  unite,  then,  in  urg-in;;^  upon  our  Grovernmeut  at  Washing- 
ton, the  importance  of  encourag'ing,  by  all  the  means  they  have  in 
their  power,  an  unrestricted  reciprocity  of  commercial  relations 
between  the  people  of  Red  River  and  those  of  the  States.  This 
little  rivulet,  which  while  it  follows  its  natural  course  contributes 
so  considerably  to  our  prosperity,  will  yet  grow  to  a  mighty  river, 
and  in  the  development  of  the  grand  scheme  of  an  inter-oceanic 
railroad,  which  is  yet  to  connect  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  Avith 
that  of  Frazer  River,  will  bear  upon  its  swelling  tides  tiie  golden 
harvests  of  tiie  mineral  slopes  of  the  Paciiic  and  the  rich  freight  of 
China  and  India. 

And  among  other  things  which  it  seems  to  me  should  be  pressed 
tipon  the  attention  of  the  Crovernment,  is  the  fact  that  there  is  at 
present  only  a  monthly  mail  between  St.  Paul  and  these  important 
settlements  on  Red  River.  Our  growing  trade  with  that  region 
demands  an  increase  of  postal  facilities,  and  the  establishment  of 
a  semi-monthly  mail  service  between  St.  Paul  and  Pembina,  seems 
to  rae  a  proper  subject  for  a  legislative  memorial  at  this  time. 
Tiie  speaker  adverted  to  the  bene6cent  eifect  which  the  extension 
of  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Canadian  Government  over  these  regions 
would  have  upon  their  colonization.  The  above  is  a  very  imperfect 
sketch  of  the  able  and  impressive  speecli  of  the  Ex-Governor. 


i 


Mr.  J.vMEs  W.  Tayloii  next  addressed  the  meeting.  He  first,  in 
reply  to  a  question  from  Gov.  Ramsey,  alluded  to  the  geological 
indications  of  British  Oregon.  Except  on  Vancouver  Island,  and 
the  opposite  shore  of  Puget  SDund,  there  had  been  observed  to  be 
an  absence  of  the  silurian  and  other  limestone  formations,  which 
either  underlie  or  are  associated  with  coal  fields.  West  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  the  Pacific  slope  was  an  immense  developement 
of  the  primary  rocks,  thrown  up  by  volcanic  violence.  And  it  is 
in  sucli  districts,  where  quartz,  granite,  gneiss  and  trap  abound, 
that  minerals  are  riostly  found,  especially  the  precious  minerals. 


80 


NORTII-WESTEKN    ROVTK 


"I. . 


W']\ 


41 

I-      '■ 


(    H' 

II. 


t ) 


These  seem  to  be  closely  related  to  the  fiery  mass  which  is  now 
generally  supposed  to  constitute  the  interior  of  the  g-lobe,  and  a:'o 
thence  ejected  throng-h  the  crust  of  the  earth's  surface.  There- 
fore, we  look  to  the  primary  formation — the  orig-inal  crust  of  the 
globe — for  the  gold-bearing  quartz.  From  Mexico  to  the  Russian 
Possessions,  the  Facitic  coast  is  characterized  by  parallel  ranges 
of  mountains,  quite  unlike  the  limestone  ridges  and  undulations  of 
the  AUeghanies.  The  Rocky  Mountains,  the  most  easterly  of  the 
Pacific  ranges,  have  been  called  Stony  or  (i listening  Mountains, 
because  abounding  in  siliceous  rocks.  These  conditions  are  favor- 
able to  gold  discovery,  and  exist  in  British  Oregon  as  fully  as  in 
Australia,  California  or  Siberia. 

As  to  the  surface  minings,  the  Frazer  and  Thompson  River  Dis- 
trict had  one  great  advantage.  Its  northern  situation  securqd  to 
the  country  frequent  and  copious  rains.  The  rivers  are  numerous 
and  full  of  rapids:  hence  the  disintegration  of  the  gold  bearing 
quartz  by  the  action  of  the  rains  and  frosts,  and  the  dispersion  of 
the  gold  along  the  beds  of  the  streams  may  be  expected  in  a  great- 
er degree  than  in  California,  where  mncb  less  rainfalls,  and  where 
work  i«  often  suspended  in  consequence.  Perhaps  this  is  a  cause 
Avhy  the  mines  of  Australia  are  falling  olf  in  productiveness.  The 
speaker  regarded  this  fall  of  water  through  North-western  Ameri- 
ca, as  not  (.(uly  valuable  for  mining,  but  as  affording  a  great  re- 
source for  agriculture  and  stock  raising  in  the  valley  of  the  Col- 
umbia and  its  tributaries,  Frazer  and  Thompson  rivers,  and  Van- 
couver Island.  The  rainless  district  of  the  Continent  was  far  to 
the  south;  but  the  immense  region  north  of  the  southern  boundary 
of  Minnesota  extended  to  the  Pacific,  was  favored  in  that  respect, 
and  agriculture  was  not  limited  by  the  necessity  of  irrigation.  A 
glance  at  the  map  would  show  the  immense  r'ver  systems  thus 
comprised.  The  basins  of  the  Columbia,  the  Upper  Missouri,  the 
Yellow  Stone,  the  James,  tie  Sioux,  the  Minnesota,  the  Red  River 
of  the  North,  the  Upper  Mississippi,  the  St.  Louis  and  the  St.  Croix, 
are  evidently  adequate  for  the  organization  of  ten  first-class  States 
of  the  American  Union;  while  north  of  the  international  line,  simi- 
lar river  systems,  to-wit,  the  basins  of  Frazer  and  Thompson  riv- 
ers, the  Upper  Cokunbia,  the  Athabasca,  (lie  Saskatchewan,  lue 
Assiniboin  and  the  Red  River  of  the  Nortli,  (llie  last  named  divid- 
ed with  Minnesota,)  are  now  well  understinul  to  be  no  less  adapted 
to  settlements.  The  present  discussion,  as  had  been  previously 
observed,  was  no  less  a  question  than  tiie  dedication  to  Anglo- 
Saxon  civilization  of  one  million  square  miles  of  the  globe;  an  area 
as  large  and  almost  identical  in  [)hysicai  respects,  with  the  Conti- 


nent o 


En 


ro] )( 


TO    BUITISH    OREGON. 


31 


Mr.  T.vvLiiH,  in  rurtlier  illustration  of  the  g'eoloj^'-ical  topic,  referred 
with  some  minuteness  to  the  relative  position  of  Minnesota.  The 
lirnest( me  blulls  at  St.  Paul  were  lower  silurian,  and  the  sandstone 
beneath  would  be  found  resting  directly  on  the  granite.  Indeed, 
this  primary  rock  was  found  in  place,  as  we  descend  still  further 
through  the  geological  basin  toward  St.  Cloud  and  the  valley  of 
Sauk  River.  Thence  iiorthwest,  wo  are  rising,  and  on  the  nead 
waters  of  the  Red  River,  a  short  distance  below  the  outlet  of  the 
Otter  Tail  Lake,  Prof.  Owen  discovered  fossils  identical  with  those 
observed  in  the  limestone  bluffs  below  St,  Paul.  Here  silurian 
rocks  rca[)pear,  and  by  all  analogies,  the  coal  measures  should  be 
found  by  going  northwest.  Accordingly,  maps  published  by  the 
British  Parliament,  reveal  an  inuncnse  silurian  development,  em- 
bracing the  Red  Kiver  valley  and  the  Saskatchewan,  except  the 
vicinity  of  its  sources  near  the  Rocky  Mountains,  where  the  coal 
measures  appear  and  are  estimated  to  occupy  an  area  of  three  hun- 
dred miles  in  diameter,  while  the  mountains  themselves  are  a 
migiity  uplujaval  of  primitive  rocks,  as  already  stated.  Doubtless 
the  fact  tluit  that  the  Saskatchewan  plains  are  of  such  gentle  ele- 
vation as  to  average  less  than  a  mean  of  twelve  hundred  feet 
above  the  sea,  may  serve  to  explain  the  vast  range  of  the  silurian 
formation,  as  well  as  the  similarity  of  climate  to  what  we  enjoy  in 
Minnesota.  ► 

While  the  difference  in  altitude  between  the  Saskatchewan  val- 
ley and  the  United  States  Territory  is  great,  materially  affecting 
the  climate,  the  circumstance  may  not  be  without  influence  geo 
logically.     The  plateau  of  the  Upper  Missouri,  although  much  low- 
er than  corresponding  longitudes  of  Kansas,  Utah  and  New  Mexico, 
greatly  exceeds  in  mean  elevation  any  portion  of  Minnesota  and 
Saskatchewan.     While,  therefore,  the  silurian  rocks  are  developed 
on  a  vast  scale  in  the  districts  last  named,  Xicollet  and  others  tc^ 
tify  that  the  banks  of  the  Missouri  at  Fort  Pierre,  due  west  from 
St.  Paul,  present  the  cretaceous  formation.      This  is  above  i/ic  coal; 
and  of  course  c(»al  must  be  found  either  in  Minnesota  or  the  future 
Territory  of  Dacotah,  since  the  Mississippi  bluffs  are  well  known  to 
be  situated  below  the  coal  measures.     Whether  on  the  James,  the 
Sioux,  the  Upper  Minnesota,  or  the  tributaries  of  the  Blue  Earth, 
these  valuaMe  dei^osits  maybe  concealed,  will  soon  be  ascertained. 
To  return  from  this  digression.     While  the  natural  features  of 
British  Oregon  prepare  us  for  the  recent  intelligence,  there  is  evi- 
dence that  the  actual  discovery  has  been  for  some  years  "the  se- 
cret of  a  corporation."'     Gov.  Stevens,  of  Washington  Territory, 
speaks  of  successful  gold  mining  on  the  American  side  of  the  boun- 


h'y.    !■ 


32 


NORTir-w KS'n:uN  kofte 


liif 


'fe 


f" 


;•#: 


^.f 


dary  ;  and  a  witness  before  the  I'arliamentaiy  Committee  states 
explicitly  that,  two  years  ago,  Americans  were  on  the  l>ar.s  of 
Thompson  Kiver,  making'  occasionally  twenty  dollars  per  day.  Why 
then,  it  may  be  asked,  has  not  gold  "broke  out,"  (to  use  a  Califor- 
nia phrase,)  long  since  ?  And  the  obvious  reply  is,  that  the  Hud- 
son Bay  Company,  until  the  present  ihiiv,  discouraged  emigration, 
whether  for  agriculture,  mining  or  any  purpose.  This  was  to  be 
expected  from  an  association  of  fur  traders.  Except  as  a  wilder- 
ness sparsely  occupied  by  the  employees  of  the  Company,  the  coun- 
try would  be  useless  to  them.  Now,  however,  there  is  reason  to 
believe  that  the  policy  of  the  Company  in  regard  to  the  belt  of 
country  between  latitudes  49  deg.  and  55  deg.  will  be  totally 
changed,  and  that  henceforth  the  co-operation  of  the  Company  in 
all  measures  for  settlement  may  be  anticipated. 

The  explanation  of  this  change  of  policy  in  a  powerful  and  sa- 
gacious corporation  as  the  Hudson  Bay  Com[)any  un(|uestionably  is, 
may  be  found  in  the  events  of  the  last  two  years,  and  an  event 
which  will  occur  next  year.  For  two  years  past  the  Canadian  and 
British  publics,  in  view  of  the  expiration  in  1859  of  the  Company's 
lease  of  Vancouver  Island  and  of  their  exclusive  license  to  trade 
with  the  Indians  west  of  the  Ilocky  Mountains,  have  gone  into  a 
rigid  scrutiny  of  the  charter  and  territorial  claims  of  the  Company. 
Public  opinion  in  Canada  seems  to  be  an  unit,  and  highly  excited 
also,  in  opposition  to  the  charter,  as  invalid  and  long  since  superce- 
ded, and,  of  course,  to  all  pretensions  of  territorial  dominion  under 
it.  A  committee  of  the  British  House  of  Commons  has  made  a 
searching  inquiry,  publishing  the  testimony  and  documents  in  a 
voluminous  Blue  Book,  into  the  constitution  and  management  of 
the  Company.  While  on  that  committee,  friends  and  even  incor- 
porators ot  the  Company  were  prominently  represented,  yet  the  in- 
terests of  colonization  were  ably  guarded  by  the  well  ku(5wn  radi- 
cal leader,  Koebuck,  and  others.  Perhaps  there  is  no  connnercial 
enterprise  of  Great  Britain  that  enlists  in  a  greater  degree  the  in- 
terests of  the  British  nobility  than  the  Hudson  Bay  Company.  Its 
shares  are  held  in  very  iniluential  quarters — otherwise,  there 
would  have  been  no  question  as  to  the  result.  The  incorporators 
became  themselves  alarmed  ;  and  in  the  hopes  of  saving  their 
charter,  they  themselves  proposed  to  give  up  the  inunense  region 
described  in  the  report  of  the  first  adjourned  meeting,  for  settle, 
ment — withdrawing  to  the  more  northern  portions  of  the  Conti- 
nent. Such  is  probably  the  basis  of  a  late  adjustment,  as  it  bad 
previously  been  the  recommendation  of  the  Committee. 

But  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  will  probably  retain   certain 


TO    BUITISn    OREGON. 


33 


"  possessory  rights,  "  as  the  phrase  is.  Tlie  rccog-nition  of  them  in 
Oregon  by  our  Government  is  a  familiar  example  of  great  benefits 
secured,  while  apparently  making  s\  sacrifice.  So  from  Lakes  Su- 
perior and  Winnipeg  to  the  Pacific.  How  easy  now  to  see,  in 
the  language  of^^io  report,  that  the  members  of  the  Company  will 
receive  an  huncJrJJi  ^^'^  more  advantage  as  proprietors  of  future 
cities  and  town*;  than  as  incorporatcil  fur-traders.  Fort  William 
on  Thunder  Bay,  Lake  Superior  North  shore;  Fort  Francis  on 
Rainy  Uiver;  Fort  Garry  on  Ked  River;  Carlton,  Pitt  and  Edmonton 
on  the  North  Saskatchewan;  Chesterfield  on  its  south  branch,  "and 
points  on  tlie  Upper  Columbia  and  Frazier  river,  besides  Vict56iria, 
already  indicated  as  the  naval  station  of  England  on  the  Pacific — 
these  and  many  other  locations  will  be  the  scenes  of  operations 
far  more  remunerative  and  exciting  than  these  trading  posts  have 
over  before  witnessed. 

It  is  reasonable  to  anticipate  that  all  connected  with  the  Hudson 
Bay  Company,  will  now  facilitate  emigration  from  the  direction  of 
Minnesota,  as  its  agents  and  servants  have  at  the  Pacific  posts. 
The  English  or  Australian  plan  maybe  adopted  of  issuing  licenses 
to  miners,  but  such  a  tax  implies  the  obligation  of  protection,  and 
as  to  the  attempt  to  confine  the  trade  in  supplies  to  the  Company 
there  is  great  doubt  whether  such  a  regulation  can  be  enforced, 
and  even  if  it  is,  it  may  be  well  for  the  protection  of  the  miners 
from  extortion  by  other  parties. 

Upon  the  practical  question  of  an  overland  jourhey  to  British 
Oregon,  a  preference  has  been  generally  expressed,  during  this 
discussion,  for  the  more  northern  route,  by  wa^  of  Pembina,  Carl- 
ton, the  north  brancli  of  the  Saskatchewan  and  the  Athabasca 
Portage  to  the  Boat  Encampment  on  the  Upper  Columbia.  The 
advantages  of  this  route  consist  of  the  succession  of  grass,  wa- 
ter, timber,  and  game,  as  detiuled  in  Sir  George  Simpson's  narra- 
tive— the  frequent  posts  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  the  security 
from  Indian  attacks,  and  the  important  fact  that  the  point  of  ogress 
from  the  Rocky  Mountains,  namely,  the  Boat  Encampment,  is  im- 
mediately adjacent  to  the  gold  district. 

Still,  a  route  from  Pembina,  far  more  to  the  south,  has  every  ad- 
vantage of  the  route  above  named,  except^tliat  a  party  might  be 
annoyed  by  Blackfect  Indians  ;  and  there  are  no  trading  posts  as 
a  resource  against  unforeseen  accidents.  A  Mr.  .LvMioi  Bird,  for 
35  years  in  the  employment  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  and  the 
American  Fur  Company,  and  occasionally  acting  as  interpreter  to 
negotiations  with  the  Blackfeet  Indians,  has  often  traversed  the 
plains  and  mountains  between  Salt  Lake  City  and  Athabasca,  and 
3 


•''4 


u 


84 


r 

NuR'lH-VVKSTKJiN    KOl'TE 


^^ 


:^  . 


f4 


I'l 


u  ■ 

,.  I, 

I,  >> ' 
t  .' 

i  X  " 


^fi 


u     * 


■  ''J '■■■ 


doscribcH  tlio  Ko()tif)nais  pas8  vtn-y  near  the  iiiturnatiunal  lino  as 
more  fiivoialili!  tliau  any  other.  A  loute  thither  wouUl  start  from 
Pembina,  pasH  to  thie  ri;,dit  of  Turtle  Mountain,  (perhaps  forty-livo 
miles  north  of  it  ■  .tiid  the  same  ilintance  beyond  the  boundary,  eroHs 
the  valley  of  Mouse  or  Saurio  River,  and  thenco  north  of  west  and 
about  midway  from  the  boundary  to  the  South  w^ki^^ehewan,  by 
Cyj)res8  Mountain,  to  the  head-waters  of  Mo-koJ|^  or  ]5elly  lliver, 
which  is  the  ni'st  nouthoily  of  tiic  iiead-watersj  of  the  Bow  or 
South  Saskatchewan. 

The  whole  route  is  very  favorable,  consistinj:^  of  an  extensive 
prairie  orbuffah)  range,  and  easily  traversed  l>y  carts.  The  pass 
thus  reached,  known  as, the  Kootonai.s  Pass,  rises  grailually  and  is 
only  three  days  walk — one  day  on  horseback — to  the  borders  of 
the  Kootonais,  McGilliviay  or  Flatbow  Kiver,  Over  this  pass  the 
Kootonais  or  Flatbow  Indians  are  accustomed  to  descend  into  the 
plains  of  the  Saskatchewan  for  their  summer  hunts  of  buffalo. 
'Beyond  the  pass,  the  route  to  Fort  Colville,  as  pursued  by  Simp- 
son, is  circuitous  and  difficult — so  much  so  as  to  add  500  miles  be- 
fore reaching  the  gold  district.  If  a  more  divcct  connection  should 
be  discovered,  this  route  might  be  found  more  advantageous  than 
any  other.  It  is  preferable  to  the  line  of  Stevens'  railroad  sur- 
vey. •     - 

In  regard  to  the  route  of  Gov.  Stevexs,  and  the  district  through 
which  it  passes,  Mr.  T.  was  inclined  to  believe,  notwithstanding 
the  strictures  of  Mr.  McLeod,  that  the  dbiintry  within  reach  of  the 
line  was  capable  of  sustaining  ten  flourishing  communities.  No 
one  supposed  that  the  immediate  vicinity'  of  the  line  was  equal  to 
the  fertile  districts  of  Illinois  or  MinneH9ta.  All  that  was  necessa- 
ry to  establish  in  the  coming  struggle  iii'CongrcBS  upon  the  Pacific 
Railroad  question,  was,  that  the  n  >i-l.hetn  route,  from  Lake  Supe- 
rior to  Puget  Sound,  has  immeasurably  the  advantage  over  any 
similar  proposition  which  has  been  urged  at  Washington.  For  one, 
the  speaker  believed  that  the  most  desirable  route  to  the  Pacific 
would  be  found  in  the  possession  of  Great  Britain,  and  that  a  great 
inter-oceanic  communication  was  more  likely  to  be  constructed 
through  the  Saskatchewan  basin,  than  over  what  may  be  not  ini. 
properly  called  the  American  Desert — the  cretaceous  and  compara. 
"tively  rainless  areas  of  southern  latitudes  within  the  territory  of 
^e  United  States.  This  Frazer  River  disoivery  may  operate  to 
the  discomfiture  of  politicians.  While  Congress  has  appropriated 
|600,000  per  annum  to  forward  a  route  near  latitude  32  deg.,  and 
even  in  the  present  depleted  state  of  the  treasury  can  spend  $150, 
000  for  a  wagon  road  near  the  latitude  of  Santa  Fe,  a  miserable 
sectionalism  ignores  the  claims  of  nine   degrees  of  latitude    south 


w 


TO  uurnsii  ouKooN. 


80 


of  the  British  bouiuUiry.  The  controversy  hiis  (h';;'L'iiL'r.itL'd  t(j  a 
coMtraiiziitioii  on  one  route  with  no  prospect  that  it  will  be  lor 
the  common  wolfjire. 

IJence  the  hist  Con^Tcss,  bron>j:ht  to  a  (h'liiUock  in  the  strugg'le 
of  localities,  made  the  best  possil)le  (liHp(isiti(»n  of  tlu;  Pacific  Kail- 
road  bills  in  post[)onin^  them.  Lot  the  wIidIc  snl>j<!ct  remain  in 
abeyance,  until  it  can  be  approached  in  a  spirit  of  national  states- 
manship. The  Northwest  makes  no  unreasonable  demand  U[)on  the 
other  sections  of  the  Confederacy.  Tlie  debouchure  of  the  Missis- 
si[)pi  upon  the  Gulf  of  iMexico;  the  junction  of  the  Missouri  and  the 
Ohio  in  mid-channel  of  the  MissisMi[)pi,  and  tlie  head  of  naviga- 
tion upon  the  iMississip[)i — from  each  of  these  localities  must 
yet  project  across  the  continent  those  communications  by  liail- 
roads  M'hich  are  already  familiar  as  the  Nortiicrn,  the  '('entral 
and  the  Southern.  Ijct  Cong'ress  determine,  in  its  wisdom,  what  aid 
in  land,  stock  and  postal  bounties  it  will  make  for  one  route,  and 
then,  either  inaj^nanimously  extend  that  encourag-oment  to  the  threo 
j^reat  routes,  or  else  proclaim  that  the  proposed  aid  of  the  nation 
shall  be  earned  by  that  road  which  first  reaches  the  longitude  of 
the  Falls  of  the  Missouri !  Certainly  eith(;r  course  would  be  per- 
fectly fair. 

But  if  the  determination  to  exhaust  the  diplomacy  and  treasury 
of  the  country,  in  spasmodic  attempts  to  sectionali/e  this  vital  sub- 
ject, is  persisted  in,  Minnesota,  at  least,  has  only  to  reach  a  friend- 
ly hand  across  her  northern  border  to  extricate  herself  from  all  the 
consequences  of  Congressional  injustice.  We  have  come  to  know 
the  people  of  Canada — equally  American  citizens  with  ourselves,  at 
least  under  the  auspicious  influence  of  Reciprocal  Trade  and  future 
Identity  of  Interests,  if  not  of  Political  Association.  English  capi- 
tal also,  sensitive  to  the  immense  benefit  of  attracting  the  bound 
less  transportation  of  the  Northwest  over  the  public  improvements 
of  British.  America,  and  fully  conscious  that  the  Canadian  railroad 
system  can  never  be  carried  to  the  north  of  Lake  Huron  and  Supe- 
rior, crosses  the  Detroit  River,  builds  a  road  through  Michigan  even 
at  this  season  of  financial  depression,  and  will  yet  co-operate  with 
the  citizens  of  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota  in  a  connoction  with  British 
America  at  Pembina.  "  Thence  to  Vancouver  ! "  will  be  the  watch- 
word of  Progress,  continental  in  the  grandeur  both  of  design  and 
results.  '^ 

The  time  has  long  passed  when  the  danger  of  future  wars  with 
England  will  deter  from  undertaking  and  consummating  such  an 
international  enterprize.  If,  in  the  late  war  with  Russia,  a  secret 
compact  mutually  exempted  from  its  hazards  the  British  and  Rub- 


SB 


NOUTII-  WKSTi;i{N    JC<niTK 


4 

i 


.1     I 


i^"^ 


U" 


ii 


1^5 

111 


m 


sian  fur-trading  pobtw  on  this  Continent — if  wo  liavu,  at  this  niomont, 
an  agreement  with  Great  Britain,  that  neither  power  shall  exceed 
an  inHignilicant  number  of  guns  on  the  Great  Tiiikes,  and  if  tlie  Tel- 
egraph, when  Huceessfnllj  submerged  on  the  Allanlic  plateau,  is 
unquestionably  to  bo  neutralized  during  the.  acx'idcnt  of  interna, 
tional  hostilities — surely  an  emigrant  route  in  the  first  instance 
and  a  railroad  soon  thereafter  to  succeed  the  wagon  or  mule  track, 
may  be  safely  entrusted  to  the  guardianship  of  peace  and  civil i/-a- 
tion.  No  other  guaranty  of  protection  is  needed,  than  the  enlight- 
ened intelligence  and  moral  sensibility  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  com- 
munities, only  separated  by  an  ocean. 

Believing  that  he  was  not  alone  in  those  opinions  and  senti- 
ments, Mr.  Taylor  said  in  conclusion,  that  ho  had  ventured  to  em- 
body them  in  resolutions,  which  he  would  read  ;  but  if  a  single 
suggestion  of  reluctance  to  entertain  them  was  intimated,  by  any 
gentleman  present,  he  begged  leave  in  advance  to  withdraw  them. 
He  then  offered  the  following 

resolutions: 

Resolccd,  That  the  citizens  of  Minnesota,  iu  common  with  the 
States  of  the  Northwest,  are  deeply  interested  in  a  connection  be- 
tween the  northern  lakes  and  the  Pacific  Ocean  ;  and  if  sectional 
counsels  shall  prevail  at  Washington,  excluding  the  great  national 
highway  between  Lake  Superior  and  I'uget  Sound,  from  its  equal 
and  just  recognition  by  Congress,  then  we  congratulate  the  citi- 
zens of  the  Lake  States,  that  by  fco-opcration  with  our  Canadian 
brethren,  an  international  route  through  the  valleys  of  the  lied 
River  of  the  North,  the  Saskatchewan  and  the  Columbia  is  not 
only  practicable,  but  will  develop  the  most  valuable  portions  of 
the  North  American  continent  into  powerful  and  populous  States. 

Resolved,  That  the  great  physical  fact  will  vindicate  itself,  name- 
ly, that  the  commerce  and  power  nf  the  globe  lies  north  of  the  for- 
tieth degree  of  north  latitude,  uiid  diat  fourfifths  of  Europe,  with 
a  corresponding  area  of  the  Pacific  coast  of  North  America,  is 
north  of  the  centre  of  Minnesota. 

Resolved,  That  the  discovery  of  gold  fields  on  Frazor  River,  and 
the  probable  removal  from  the  Saskatchewan  District,  British 
■Oregon  and  Vancouver  Island,  of  dominion  by  the  Hudson  Bay 
Company,  opening  those  immense  and  fertile  territories  to  settle- 
ment, are  considerations  which  imperatively  demand  a  far  different 
policy  by  the  Government  of  the  United  States  than  has  hitherto 
prevailed. 


TO    ItUITISlI    UlitdON. 


3T 


corn- 


lie.sdhrd,  Tliiit  wo  awk  u<ttliiii{^  iiidi-o  for  the  NcM'tlicru  ruuto  of  a 
Pacific  railroiid,  than  we  wnuUI  ^^riitit  iti  aid  of  a  ('critral  or  South- 
ern route  ;  but  an^^tiiinj^^  Ichh  will  \h>  a  j^a'oH.s  injustice,  against 
which  the  [)0()phM)f  AlinncHota  hav(!  a  ri^-Jit  to  pnitest. 

Resolved,  That  our  Senators  anil  IIe[»ro.s(!ntativeH  be  reijueated 
to  vote  for  the  i»ost[)on(nn<'nt  of  I'acilic;  railway  bills,  unless  they 
are  just  to  the;  ^wwi  fjake  route,  or  at  least  until  the  Census  of 
18G0  j^ives  the  Xorthwcst  her  full  voice  in  tlic  (.'ouncils  of  tiic 
Union. 

The  resolutions  were  uiianiruously  adoptcnl. 

The  nieetin,!^  then  adjourned  to  Saturday  at  4  1'.  M.,  in  the  Hall 
of  the  IIouKc  of  Ke[)re8enta'tiveH. 


I 


\ 


'V  III  R  I)  A I  >.  J  0  U  R  X  M I )  MEET  I N  0 . 

Tho  third  adjourned  nie(itin;^  of  the  citizens  of  St.  Paid  upon  the 
subject  of  openinj^  the  overland  emigration  route  from  St,  Paul  to 
Frazer  River,  was  held  at  the  Capitol  on  Saturday,  July  Uth,  at  4 
o'clock  l\  M. 

Capt.  Staukky  was  called  to  the  cliair,  aiul  in  the  course  of  re- 
marks explanat(jry  of  tho  objects  of  the  meeting',  read  some  news 
of  an  interesting  character,  which  had  just  been  received  ironi  that 
quarter. 

J.  W.  Tayloh,  Es(p,  having  been  called  upon,  made  some  remarks 
upon  the  practical  object  of  these  and  previous  meetings,  which  he 
said  should  result  in  measures,  lie  cordially  recommended  Martin 
McLeoh,  Es(1.,  as  the  man  to  carry  out  Uicse  measures,  and  intro- 
duced the  following  series  of  resolutions,  indicating  a  plan  of  op- 
erations: ' 

liesolced,  That  Afartin  Mcljeod  be  reriuestcd  to  organize  and  con- 
duct a  party  of  ten  men  for  the  purpose  of  exploring  the  best  route 
from  Minnesota  to  tho  Frazer  River  Gobi  District  through  the  val- 
leys of  the  Red  River  of  the  Nort!;,  and  tho  Saskatchewan. 

Ihsokcd,  That  llenry  McKenty,  J.  \V.  McClung  and  J.  M.  Stone, 
be  a  Committee  to  obtain  subscriptions  of  citizens  payable  to  the 
order  of  Martin  McLeod,  on  or  before  the  1st  day  of  August,  in 
amount  and  items  as  follows: 

('ash  or  Credits  at  Rcrl  llivor  Settlements  or  Hiulson  Bay  (-'om- 

paiiy's  Posts $1000,00 

ToauH  and  Vehicles 1000,00 

Ten  barrels  Flour,  cost  $4  per  barrel " 40,00 

Five  barrels  Pork,  cost  $18  per  barrel 90,00 

Four  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  Sugar 54,00 


<  li 


: 


'i'  (i 


«:tr 


4 


::i 


38  NORTH-WESTERN    ROUTL. 

Forty  pounds  Tea,  60c  per  pound 24,00 

Ten  pairs  Blankets 100,00 

I»owder  and  Lead 100,00 

Sundries 200,00 

Total S2608,00 

Resolved,  Tliat  tho  Common  Council  of  tlie  city  of  St.  Paul,  is  here- 
by memorialized  to  make  a  direct  appropriation  for  the  above  ob- 
ject, or  to  guarantee  the  payment  of  the  sums  subscribed  by  indi- 
viduals, at  the  expiration  of  one  year,  from  August  1,  1858. 

Resolved,  That  Mr.  McLeod  be  requested  to  take  the  personal  ob- 
ligations of  all  men  employed  by  him  for  the  repayment  of  their 
respective  shares  of  the  foregoing  outfit  at  the  expiration  of  one 
year  from  August  1,  1858,  and  to  hold  the  same  for  the  stockhold- 
ers ;  but  vi'ith  power  to  cancel  said  notes  in  whole  or  in  part,  if  un- 
foreseen events  make  it  equitable  to  do  so. 

Also,  To  announce  to  the  public,  at  his  earliest  convenience,  the 
terms  and  conditions  upon  which  he  will  receive  volunteers,  in  ad- 
dition to  the  "picked  men,"  who  may  compose  his  own  party. 

Also,  To  preserve  careful  notes  of  his  own  observations,  and  of 
all  accessible  information  in  regard  to  the  intermediate  country, 
and  emigrant  route's  to  the  Pacific  ;  and  furnish  the  same  for  pub- 
lication. 

Resolved,  That  the  Legislature  is  hereby  memorialized  to  pass  an 
act  authorizing  the  incorporated  cities  and  towns  of  Minnesota  to 
guarantee  tho  repayment  of  sums  advanced  by  tho  citizens  of  said 
cities  or  towns,  in  organizing  and  furnishing  overland  parties  to 
the  Pacific  ;  but  limiting,  as  may  be  dee'.ied  expedient,  the  extent 
of  such  guaranty. 

Resolved,  That  the  State  Government  be  also  memorialized,  on 
the  return  of  parties  so  organized  and  forwarded,  to  compile, 
publish  and  circulate,  under  the  directioa  of  the  Governor,  all  ob- 
servations and  information  which  may  be  collected  by  said  parties, 
and  to  appropriate  at  this  session,  a  reasonable  amount  for  that 
purpose. 

Resolved,  That  the  Secretary,  J.  A.  Wheelock,  Esq.,  be  requested 
to  prepare  a  memoir  upon  the  population  and  commerce  o^  the  Red 
River  Settlements,  and  their  relations  "to  the  subject  of  overland 
emigration  ;  and  also,  a  memorial  to  the  Postmaster  General  for  a 
cemi-monthly  rrr,,il  to  I  .^mbina,  via  Otter  Tail  Lake. 

On  motion,  the  resol  itions  were  adopted.  Whereupon  the  meet- 
ing adjourr-.d  sim  die. 


t)  i<U 


GOLD    DISOOVEUV. 


39 


1)0 

oo 

00 
00 

oo 

here- 
e  ob- 
iudi- 


APPENDIX  NO.  II. 


PARTICLT.ARS    OF    TilE    GOLD    DISCOVKRY    OX    FRAZER  AND  TflOMI'SOX  RIVERS, 

AND  OF  EMIORATLON  THITHER. 


i 


[San  Frant-cisco  (May  10)  Correspondence  of  London  Times.] 

'Two  vessels  have  arrived  here  from  the  British  possessions  iu 
the  northwest  since  the  despatch  of  my  last  letter  on  the  8th  inst. 
The  last  steamer  from  Vancouver  Island  arrived  the  day  before 
yesterday.  The  richness  of  the  new  gold  mines  is  fully  confirmed. 
The  accounts,  both  private  and  public,  are  so  voluminous  that  ^^ 
can  only  venture  to  give  the  salient  points.  First,  I  will  (juotc  a 
few  facts  to  show  the  productiveness  of  the  mines.  "  A  returned 
miner,"  writes  the  special  correspondent  of  a  San  Francisco  paper 
from  Fort  Laugley,  on  the  Frazer  River,  whose  name  is  given,  and 
who  was  two  months  iu  the  diggings, 

"  Earned  from  $15  to  $20  per  day  in  ins  '  cla'ni.  He  brought 
down  with  him  $2,500  worth  of  gold  dust,  whicli  he  sold  at  Fort 
Lauglcy.  There  are  numbers  of  men  here  with  gold.  They  all 
intend  to  return  to  the  mines  with  provisions,  which  they  camo 
down  fo;." 

Fro.ii  Victoria,  Vancouver  Island,  a  goutlemaii  '''rites  on  the  9th 
instunk 

"  Yesterday  the  Tludsou  Bay  Company's  steam  piopcllci  Otter 
arrived  here  from  Fort  Langley,  one  of  their  trading  posts  on  the  ^, 
Frazer  River,  and  brought  gold  dust  valued  at  $35,000 — ;judgi«|^ 
from  the  fact  that  its  weight  was  as  much  as  one  could  couveai- 
ently  carr3%  Heavy  gold  is  found  ten  mih's  from  the  mouth  of 
Thompsoii  River,  at  a  place  called  Necowman.  The  heaviest  nug- 
get yet  foufrd  was  $S  25.  Bank  and  river  mining  is  going  on  be- 
tween tlie  r'orks  and  Big  Falls  of  P'razer  Riv  m-,  into  which  Thomp- 
son River  runs,  or  in  other  -w^ords,  is  a  tributary  to  the  former. 
The  number  of  miners  now  working  is  estimated  by  one  of  tlieir 
ttumber,  from  whom  I*  received  the  above,  at  1,000  men — all  of 
whom,  he  assured  me,  were  doing  well.  To  (^uot^^  his  figures, 
they  were  making  from  $10  to  $40  per  day  " 


1: 

r 


w 


m 


■  i; 


m 


I 


!  I 


if 


4m 

I 


II' 


^ 


■  V 


40 


PARTICULARS    OF   THE 


From  other  sources  we  learn  that  miners  located  near  the  Forks 
of  Thompson  River,  about  two  hundred  miles  distant  from  the 
•  mouth  of  the  Frazer  River,  are  successfully  at  work.  One  man 
writes  that  he  is  getting  out  $35  a  day.  The  higher  up  the  richer 
the  diggings,  it  would  appear;  for  at  Fort  Yale,  some  eighty-five 
miles  down,  the  "yield"  is  only  from  $8  to  $16  a  day  to  the  men. 
From  the  last  named  place  we  have  the  following  information: 

"  Some  fifty  or  more  are  at  work  a  few  miles  above  Fort  Yale. 
Mr.  M'Caw  ascended  the  river  some  twenty  miles  above  Fort  Yale, 
a  id  asserts  that  the  diggings  arc  rich  along  the  whole  of  that 
distance,  the  mines  yielding  an  average  of  not  less  than  $12  per 
day  per  man.  The  gold  is  found  on  and  within  six  inches  of  the 
surface.  Mr.  Al'Caw  brings  fifty  ounces  of  the  gold  with  him,  the 
largest  pieces  of  which  are  worth  $3  or  $4.  lie  received  this  in 
trade  with  the  Indians." 

From  a  new  town  just  springing  up,  called  Whatcom,  near  Bel- 
lingham  Bay,  on  tlie  Gulf  of  Georgia,  a  correspondent  writes: 

"  From  the  mines  the  news  is  quite  as  favorable  as  any  hereto- 
fore received.  Mv.  Giddings  estimates  that  upwards  of  $20,000 
had  been  received  at  Whatcom  by  merchants  within  the  week  pre- 
ceding his  departure,  iii  payment  for  goods.  Miners  were  arriv- 
ing and  departing  every  day;  those  arriving  invariably  making 
their  stay  as  short  as  possible.  A  party  had  returned  to  What- 
com a  few  days  previous  to  Mr!  Giddings'  departure,  who  had  pro- 
ceeded as  far  as  Fqrt  Hope,  where  they  met  a  large  company  just 
from  the  mines,  to  whom  they  disposed  pf  prov!..ions  at  about  400 
per  cent,  above  cost.  The  miners  '  stantiy  retraced  their  steps, 
while  the  others  returned  to  Whatcom." 

"We  were  shown  by  Mr.  Giddings  a  specimen  of  the  gold 
brought  from  the  mines.  It  is  very  fine,  and  of  the  kind  known  as 
'scale  gold;  By  those  famiHar  with  it  we  Are  informed  that  it  is 
very  similar  to  the  '  placer  gold'  of  California.  Among  the  dust 
shown  us,  which  amounted  tosorftc  $200,  were  several  largo  lumps, 
beautiful  specimens,  which  were  prob'vbly  worth  from  $2  50  to  $5 
each.     The  gold  is  of  a  dark  red  color. ' 

On  the  last  day  of  April,  a  miner,  writing  from  M'Caw's  Rapids, 
beyond  Fort  Yale,  on  his  way  up,  says  :  — 

"  We  have  prospected  on  several  bars,,  and  on  ope  of .  tliem  we 
got  from  6c.  to  25c.  to  the  pan,  and  took  only  the  top  dirt.  On  an- 
other we  got  from  5c.  to  10c.  to  the  pan.  We  could  not,  stop  at 
the  former  place,  as  the  Indians  would  not  allow  us,  and  we  were 
not  strong  enough  for  liiom. 

"  The  Indians  we«c  all  at  work  themselves,  aud  we  saw  two  or 


rn 


'7M 


%' 


f    ' 


GOLD    DISCOVERY, 


41 


throe  pans  with  about  50c.  in  each.  At  the  latter  place  we  cannot 
work  to  advantat^e  \!;ithout  a  quicksilver  machine.  An  old  Cali- 
fornia miner  says  that  this  place  very  closely  rescnbles  the  North. 
Pork  of  the  American  River  in  California,  and  that  he  believes 
richor  mines  will  be  ciscovcrcd  here  than  have  ever  been  discov^- 
ered  in  California, 

"  A  few  miles  below  this  there  is  a  party  of  whites,  who  were 
to  have  a  sluice  in  operation  either  to-day  or  to-morrow.  An  In- 
dian has  just  arrived  in  a  canoe,  and  ho  teMs  me  the  sluice  is  in 
operation,  and  that  they  are  taking  out  '  /ci-yit  (or  plenty)  gold.' 
Majoi-  Tidd  and  Mr.  Finnigan  liavc  boMi  started  to  see  them." 

There  is  no  necessity  to  multiply  instances  of  individual  gains^ 
"  strikes,"  or  "luck,"  to  pro^e  that  gold  exists  in  abundance.  .The 
area  of  the  auriferous  country  is  as  yet  unknown.  It  seems  to  be^ 
in  fact,  a  continuation  of  the  great  California  gold  field  running 
through  Oregon  (where  its  treasures  have  for  years  past  been  dug 
up)  and  the  intermediate  American  Territory  of  Washington  to 
Ihe  extensive  British  possessions  washed  by  the  waters  of  the 
Gulf  of  Georgia  and  of  Puget  Sound  on  the  west,  and  extending 
uoithwardly  and  eastwardly  to  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

There  are  at  present  difTiculties  to  be  encountered  in  getting  to 
the  mines,  owing  to  the  swollen  s^lAfc'of  the  Frazcr  River  and  to 
the  country  near  its  bunks,  being  inhibited  by  the  freshets  which 
prevail  at  tiiis  season  from  tiic  moltiiig*^  the  snows  of  the  Rocky 
'lountains,  and  in  consocjuence  of  the  "rapids,"  which  necessitate 
long  and  wearisome  "  portages."  Several  persons  have  been 
drowned  by  the  upsetting  of  canoes,  which  they  were  not  acquaint- 
ed with  the  management  of.  Indians  a'*e  to  be  had  in  plenty  to 
perform  this  labor,  however,  an.,  at  moderate  waflfcs — $1  a  day  and 
meals. 

The  following  are  given  ,as  the  distances  from  Victoria  to  the 
trading  posts  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  en  route  to  the  gold 
0"ids  -  viz:  from  Victoria,  Vanccrivei'  Islapd,  to  Fort  Langley,  80 
■  .  !(  ^  ;  Trom  the  latter  to  Fort  Hope,  GO  miles  ;  Fort  Hope  to  Fort 
Y.ii-  './  miles  :  Fort  Yale  to  mouth  of  Thompson  River,  110  miles; 
thenco  {-,  Big  Falls  on  the  Frazcr,  t5  miles  ;  tola/,  340  viiles  to  the 
diggings  as  yd  found  lo  Ic  the  richest.  The  means  and  expense  of 
getting  from  the  coast  to  the  lower  and  nearest  mines  are  thus  de* 
scribed  by  a  person  at  Port  Townsend  : — 

"  The  mines  commence  about  fifteen  miles  above  Fort  Hope. 
Frazer  River  can  be  navigated  by  sailing  vessels  of  considerable 
size  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  Harrison  River,  or  half-way  between 
Fort  Langley  and  Fort  Hope.     Vessels  sailing  from  Port  Townsend 


.■V 


42 


PARTICULAJ18   OF   THE 


1    ! 


!ii 


ill 


I  1  ' 


1  U-      *'' 


\. 


charge  $10  passage  to  Fort  Langley,  and  $15  to  Harrison  River,  al- 
lowing  each  passenger  to  take  three  months'  provisions  without 
charge  for  freight.  At  the  mouth  of  the  Harrison  River  the  rapids 
commence,  but  form  no  very  serious  obstruction.  Light  steamers 
can  go  up  to  the  very  gold  mines,  fifteen  miles  above  Fort  Hope." 

Some  rival  routes  to  that  of  the  ascent  by  Frazer  River  have 
been  tried,  but  experience  is  proving  that  this  river  affords  the 
safest  and  easiest  route. 

The  Pacific  Steam  Navigation  Company's  boats,  which  leave 
San  Francisco  twice  a  month  for  Puget  Sound,  will  call  to  land 
passengers  and  freight  on  every  trip,  either  at  Victoria  or  Esqui- 
mault  Harbor  (close  to  the  former,)  Vancouver  Island,  in  terms 
of  an  arrangement  made  last  week  with  the  Governor  ;  and  it  is 
understood  that  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  will  make  provision  for 
the  conveyance  of  passengers  up  the  Frazer  River,  by  means  of 
suitable  steamers.  This  river  is  navigable  a  distance  of  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  milr^-;  for  vessels  drawing  four  feet  of  water,  all 
which  will  greatly  if  3  getting  to  the  new  El  Dorado. 

The  Indians  are  saiu  ,  oe  behaving,  on  the  whole,  very  well, 
engaging  themselves  in  the  labor  of  working  canoes,  and  trading 
freely.  In  a  few  cases  they  prohibited  white  men  from  "digging" 
in  their  placers,  but  in  other  instances,  showed  a  spirit  of  com- 
mendable liberality. 

A  miner  on  the  spot  says  :  "The  Indians  are  friendly,  and  will 
continue  so  as  long  as  tlicy  remain  unmolested,"  This  report  is 
corroborated  by  others.  The  I'act  is,  those  Indians  are  brave  and 
warlike,  well  armed  with  "shooting  irons,"  and  skilled  in  the  use 
of  them.  They  have  been  accustomed  to  just  treatment  from  the 
Hudson  Bay  Company,  and  will  exact  "justice"  from  their  new 
neighb(jrs.  Tiie  only  vice  they  are  charged  with  is  that  they  give 
a  very  loose  interpretation  to  the  doctrines  of  mtimi  and  tiaim — 
certainly  an  inconvenient  weakness  to  travellers  adrift  among 
them.     They  seem,  however,  to  be  very  civil  and  obliging  thieves. 

The  quantity  of  gold  brought  by  the  last  steamer  from  the  new 
mines  to  San  Francisco,  as  manifested,  was  only  two  hundred 
ounces  ;  but  the  passengers  brought  a  good  deal  more.  From  the 
quantity  oflered  for  sale  to-day,  it  is  judged  that  about  $15,000 
worth  was  brought  altogether. 

A  strong  desire  is  evinced  here  and  at  the  North  to  ascertain  the 
spot  where  the  chief  city,  which  is  certain  to  spring  up,  is  to  be  lo- 
cated.    The  Americans  will  make  a 


ing 


city 


in  their  territory — at  Bellingham  Bay,  probably.    They  are  great 
adepts  at  this  sort  of  thing,  and  unless  the  English  take  immediate 


GOLD   DISCOVERY 


43 


al. 


m 


steps  to  secure  the  city  on  English  territory,  tlioy  may  find  them- 
selves cut  out  by  their  "faster"  neighbors,  who  have  one  advan- 
tage in  the  fact,  that  the  majority  of  the  emigrants  will  be  Ameri- 
cans, who  will  prefer  to  "locate"  on  American  soil. 

The  site  once  selected,  much  capital  will  be  attracted  to  it  for 
speculation  in  "real  estate,"  to  use  a  slang  phrase  of  ours.  Pres- 
ent appearances  would  point  to  the  main  land  as  a  more  conven- 
ient location  for  a  town  to  be  dependant  upon  the  mines  in  the  in- 
terior, rathe  I  than  to  Vancouver  Island,  separated  as  it  is  from 
the  coast  by  the  Gulf  of  Georgia,  although  from  the  following  flat- 
tering notice  of  the  island,  it  has  also  p(3culiar  advantages  : — 

"The  situation  for  a  large  town  here  is  almost  unequalled — the 
climate  is  equal  to  the  South  of  France.     Living  is  cheap,  the  re- 
sources of  the  country  good.     There  is  a  wild  grass  common  on 
the  prairie  land  here,  the  root  of  which   is  an  onion-like  bulb,  as 
large  as  a  good-sized  thumb,  on  which  pigs  feed  and  keep  fat  all 
the  year  round.     The  keeping  of  pigs  is  a  >^ery  profitable  business. 
Cattle  and  sheep  get  their  living  all  the  year  round,  and  keep  fat. 
Stock  raising  is  very  profitable — cows  and  oxen   are  worth  now 
one  hundred  dollars  per  head.     There  is  an  abundance  of  wood  of 
almost  every  description  found  in  these  latitudes.     Vegetables  are 
quite  equal  to,  if  not  better  than  those  of  Nova  Scotia.    There  is  a 
vast   abundance  of   fish  of  the  very  finest  quality — salmon  and 
halibut." 


[From  letters  ia  the  Sacramento  Union  of  June  12.] 
A.  D.  McDoxALD,  writing  from  Steilacoom,  May  13th,  to  a  friend, 
and  whose  letter  appears  in  the  Bulletin,  says  : 

"Miners  are  making  from  $8  to  $16  a  day,  the  pan  and  rocker 
alone  being  used.  Tlie  hopper  of  the  latter  is  in  most  cases  made 
of  bored  cedar.  There  are  notovei-  two  hundred  men  at  work,  and 
from  the  awkward  manner  in  which  moat  of  them  operate,  there 
are  evidently  few  California  miners  among  them.  They  are  all  in 
exuberant  spirits,  and  from  tlie  fact  of  their  having  got  up  the 
river  previous  to  its  rise,  and  having  a  supply  of  provisions  to  last 
them  for  at  least  two  or  three  months,  they  are  likely  to  realize 
their  sanguin<i  hopes  of  speedy  wealth,  for  the  facility  and  ease 
they  have  in  realizing  "  an  ounce  to  the  hand,"  was  never  equaled 
in  any  country  before.  They  dig  on  the  banks  (not  the  bars  of  the 
rivers,  which  are  covered  here  with  water)  from  sixteen  to  eigh- 
teen inches  deep.  Quartz  also  abounds,  and  crops  out  on  the  surface 
in  many  places  very  conspicuously.  A  host  of  Indians  are  at  work 


44 


PARTICULARS   OF   THE 


' 


'4 


V 


along  the  banks,  with  ^v-ooden  boxes  or  bowls,  about  twelve  inches 
square,  and  some  with  a  rude  imitation  of  a  sluice,  dug  out  of 
cedar,  about  two  by  live  feet,  which  tliey  place  at  an  angle  of  about 
ten  degrees.  They  put  the  earth  into  it  and  then  throw  water 
upon  it,  collecting  the  gold  which  rcn:ains  in  the  bottom,  and 
panning  out  in  the  usual  way  with  their  wooden  bowls.  The  dust 
found  here,  I  would  inform  the  initiated,  is,  both  in  quality  and 
description,  characteristic  of  the  American  River  gold;  it  perhaps 
resembles  the  Mississippi  Bar  dirt,  in  this  vicinity,  more  than  any 
other;  but  higlicr  up  the  stream  it  is  much  coarser,  and  approaches 
so  nearly  that  it  would  be  taken  for  Hector's  or  contiguous  bars, 
on  the  Middle  Fork  of  the  American  River.  T/te  Fall,  Winter  and 
Spring  seasons  are,  on  account  of  the  loio  stage  of  loater  in  the  rivers,  the 
lest  months,  not  only  for  working  tlie  mines,  hut  also  for  navigating  the 
streams.  During  the  Winter,  Frazcr  River  ca,v  he  navigated  by  canoe 
some  hundreds  of  miles.  It  drains  a  large  extent  of  territory,  and  has 
been  explored  *I00  miles.  Under  present  circumstances,  I  would 
advise  no  person  to  start  for  the  mines  before  the  middle  of  Au- 
gust," 

Robert  II.  Austin  writes  from  Victoria,  V.  I.,  on  the  23d  of  May, 
to  his  uncle,  Joseph  Austin,  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, as  follows.     The  letter  appears  in  the  Bulletin: 

"DoANE,  IIoMKR  and  myself,  since  I  wrote    the  within,  have  been 
out  to  Esquimault,     We  met  with  one  Coi.e,    whom  I  had  heard  of 
before.     He  war.  formciily  a  Lieutenant  in   the    British  Navy.     lie 
served  in  the  Russian  war,  and  was  at  the  taking   of  Sebastopol, 
Avhere  he  lost  an  eye  and  received  a    wound  in   his   leg.     He  has 
been  here  mining  since  March  last,  on   Frazer  and  Thompson   riv- 
ers.    Ho  assures  us  that  where  he  was  mining,  the  miners  avera- 
ged eight  dollars  per  day  ;  and,  indeed,   that  very  niany  of  them 
with  a  common  rocker  have   realized   §150  for  a  day's   work.     lie 
has  no  doubt,  ho  says,  but  that  when  the  river   falls   on   the  bars, 
they  will  take  it  out  in  much  larger  quantities,     (^artz  is  found  in 
the  mountains  about  there,  with  morecr  less  gold  in  it ;    and  the  higher  ymo 
go  up  Thompson  River,  the  ri  ^er    the  ground   becomes.     But    150  miles 
above  Fort  Yale  the  Indians  are  troublesome,  and  will    not  allow 
the  minors  to  work.     Cole  leaves  to-morrow  for  the  mines  again  ; 
but  thinks  it  time  enough  for  persons  to  leave   here  in   about   four 
weeks,  when  they  may  be  able  to  go  all  the  way  in  a   whale  boat 
without  danger.     Little  CREi(;nroN  and  o  party  leave  here    in  the 
morning  by  canoes,   for  Fort   Langley,   and   from  thence  to  the 


mines. 


A  "Returned  Miner''  gives  the  Alta  the  following 


GOLD     DI800VKUV. 


45 


"Having  just  returued  on  the  st  .amer  Panama,  from  the  new  gold 
diggings  on  Frazer  and  Thompson  rivers,  I  have  determined  to 
write  a  few  lines,  as  1  see  other  people's  statements  are  welcome. 
M  /  remarks  will  probably  be  desultory  and  disconnected,  so  you 
must  fix  them  up,  In  tiie  first  place,  all  the  news  you  receive  by 
the  steamer  looks  decidedly  favorable,  as  far  as  the  existence  of 
gold  is  concerned.  The  statement  is  true — gold  does  exist  in  this 
new  counti'y,  a7id  there  is  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  the  v.pper  mines  are 
much  like  the  upper  mountain  mines  of  California.  You  know  gold 
was  found  twenty  miles  from  Sacramento,  en  the  Ameiican  Rivet; 
at  Mormon  Island,  and  that  there  is  the  first  commencement  of  the 
gold  bearing  region.  And  so  on  Frazer  lliver  ;  the  first  diggings 
are  not  far  from  the  Sound  ;  but  there,  as  here,  the  richest  mines  will 
he  found  far  vp  in  the  mountains.  Now,  what  I  want  to  get  at  is, 
that,  granting  the  gold  country  is  there,  let  people  intending  to 
emigrate  look  well  before  they  start  Tiie  route  to  the-  mines  by 
Frazer  River  can  never  be  successful  as  a  freight  line  of  traffic,  as 
it  is  impassable  twenty  miles  above  Fort  Yale,  and  the  trails  are 
almost  hopelessly  impassable  for  any  human  being,  not  to  speak 
of  horses  and  mules.  The  latter  are  not  to  be  got  there,  and  the 
former  are  utterly  useless  in  that  country.  ,  You  must  see  it  is  im- 
possible to  get  provisions  to  the  upper  mines  by  the  river.  All  tht 
'provisions  on  the  head  waters  (f  these  rivers  have  been  brought  from  the 
Colville  count)  y,  by  the  half-breed  traders  of  t/ie  Coliimfda  lliver.  The 
people  who  get  to  the  interior  mines  first,  must  take  their  own 
provisions  on  their  backs,  their  blankets,  their  tools,  etc.,  all  ad- 
ded to  their  pack,  to  be  carried  over  a  terrible  road,  from  60  to  150 
miles.  AI".  the  towns  on  the  Sound  are  now  endeavoring  to  get 
trails  through  to  the  mines  and  each  is  asserting  that  the  other's 
trail  is  impracticable,  until  you  cannot  believe  any  of  them.  I 
know  none  t)f  them  have  yet  succeeded,  and  none  can  say  whether 
they  will,  or  if  so,  when.  For  n)y  part,  1  cannot  tell  what  is  going 
to  become  of  all  the  crowd  now  going  to  Fugot  Sound,  because 
they  must  all  stop  on  the  river  below  the  falls,  or  pack,  as  I  said, 
their  food,  blankets,  tools,  etc.,  as  there  are  no  trading  posts 
stocked  with  goods  in  the  land  to  which  they  are  going." 

"If  a  trail  can  be  opened  through  the  Coast  mountains  into  the 
valley  of  the  Cidumbia.  and  from  vlience  into  tlic  upper  mining  re 
srions.  the  travel  would  not  be  so  bad.  Pack  horses  could  be 
used,  and  tlie  route  would  be  through  American  territory." 

A  Correspondent  of  the  New  York  Advertiser,  writing  from  Vic- 
toria, Vnnctmver  Island,  June  Olh,  gives  the  following  interesting 
facts  relative  to  the  new  gold  region  : 


•I 

■    1 


40 


rAlM'KJULAKS   OF    (JOLD    DISCOVEKV. 


1'i 


|,i     ii 

.1:" 


3 '  I '  - 


m 


"  I  arrived  here  on  the  loth  April  last.  It  was  only  a  few  weeks 
before  that  gold  was  discovered  in  Britisli  Territory  on  Frazcr 
River,  since  which  I  have  been  carefully  watching  events,  and 
getting  all  the  information  relative  to  the  gold  regions  and  the 
resources  of  this  iine  country.  It  is  now  fully  confirmed  and 
universally  admitted,  that  this  is  the  third  great  Eldorado,  and  the 
mines,  as  far  as  known,  exceed  in  riches  those  of  California  in 
1849,  and  cover  a  vast  extent  of  country.  The  higher  they  ascend 
the  rivers,  the  richer  the  mines  and  coarser  the  gold.  But  miners 
do  not  go  very  far  up  at  present,  not  being  sufficiently  strong  to 
defend  themselves  against-  the  Indians.  Immigration  has  com- 
menced from  Washington  and  Oregon  Territories,  and  from  Cali- 
fornia alone  about  two  thousand  arrive  weekly  at  the  mines.  Wo 
anticipate  a  very  large  immigration,  and  from  the  Pacific  coast 
alone  nearly  a  hundred  thousand,  it  is  expected,  will  arrive  by 
November  next.  This  island  contains  about  twenty  thousand 
square  miles.  It  abounds  in  excellent  harbors,  vast  forests  of 
good  timber,  a  great  abundance  of  fish  of  the  finest  quality,  very 
extensive  beds  of  coal,  and  the  best  description  of  lands  for  agri- 
cultural purposes.  It  has  a  remarkably  fine  climate,  resembling 
the  west  coast  of  France.  It  has  also  quartz  and  other  gold  mines 
with  copper,  iron,  &c.  Of  the  continental  portions  of  this  exten- 
sive country  but  litth;  is  known,  except  by  the  Hudson  Bay  Com- 
pany. »vho  rigidly  conceal  all  they  can  from  the  world. 

"  Victoria  has  a  small  harbor.  Vessels  drawing  eleven  feet  can 
enter  at  low  water.  Esquiraault,  three  miles  distant,  has  one  of  the 
finest  harbors  in  the  world.  It  is  the  British  naval  depot.  A  town 
is  being  built  out  there  to  be  incorporated  with  Victoria.  All  large 
vessels  and  steamers  put  into  Esquimault ;  small  vessels  into  Vic- 
toria. There  are  little  or  no  port  charges,  except  lighterage,  there 
not  yet  being  any  wharves.  There  are  no  duties  on  any  description 
of  merchandize,  this  being  a  free  port.  There  are  no  taxes  of  any 
kind,  except  a  license  for  selling  liquors.  The  expenses  of  the 
colony  are  paid  by  sales  of  public  lands.  All  persons  of  all  nations 
are  allowed  full  privileges  to  trade  on  this  Island,  but  on  the  ad- 
joining continent,  the  Hudson  Bay  Company  claim  the  exclusive 
right  of  trade  and  the  navigation  of  its  rivers.  Miners  are  per- 
mitted to  ascend  Frazcr  River  in  canoes  by  paying  $6  for  a  permit, 
and  each  to  pay  one  guinea  per  month  as  a  license  for  mining. 
The  Hudson  Bay  Company,  however,  have  permitted  a  steamer  to 
run  up  Frazor  River  lately,  which  they  say  will  be  continued  until 
action  is  taken  by  the  British  Government,  who  will  take  the 
colonization  of  the  country  into  their  own  hands  in  two  or  three 
months." 


fJEOCJKAPinCAL    DESCRH'TIONS. 


47 


[From  the  iorcguing'  extracts  the  rciider  will  notice  the  follow- 
ing facts: 

1.  The  distance  by  Frazer  River  to  the  centre  of  the  gold-bear- 
ing region,  is  340  miles.  The  sources  of  the  Saskatchewan,  to 
which  an  emigrant  could  go  in  a  wagon,  are  no  more  remote. 

2.  A  "  returned  minor,"  it  will  be  seen,  recommends  communi- 
cation with  the  Gold  District  from  the  Upper  Columbia,  but  the 
river  last  named  is  only  a  few  days  journey,  through  favorable 
passes,  from  the  Saskatchewan  plains. 

3.  Observe  the  testimony  of  McDonald,  that  the  Fall,  Winter 
and  Spring  are  the  best  seasons  for  mining.  This  is  sufficient  tes- 
timony to  the  mildness  of  the  climate. 

4.  There  is  accumulated  evidence  that  the  Indians,  on  the  Nor- 
thern routes,  are  not  hostile. 

5.  In  the  last  place,  all  doul)ts  as  to  the  richness  of  the  gold 
fields  arc  removed,  and  the  most  important  fact  is  elicited,  that  the 
most  valuable  "  diggings  "  are  near  the  sources  of  the  streams— 
thus  shortening  the  requisite  route  from  Minnesota.  Indeed,  the 
waters  of  the  Columbia,  within  three  or  five  days  of  the  Saskatche- 
wan plains,  may  prove  th'3  most  desirable  for  gold  seekers.] 


iW 


ATPENDIX    NO.    III. 

GEOGRAPHICAL   DESCRIPTION    OF   MINNESOTA  NORTH   OF   LATITUDE    FORTY-SLN:. 


[Prom  a  communication  by  J.  W.  Taylor,  to  the  St.  Paul  Advertiser  of  January 

151,    1857.] 

That  portion  of  Minnesota  which  lies  north  of  latitude  46  deg.  and 
east  of  the  Red  River,  is  as  large  as  ihc  Statt  of  New  Yoi-k,  which 
has  an  area  of  47,000  square  miles  or  30,800,000  acres  It  .s  dif- 
ficult to  realize  this  fact,  but  a  moment's  computation  from  the  out- 
lines of  a  map  will  establish  it,  and  I  venture  the  further  state- 


i    ■?, 


Ei 


48 


GEOGKAnilOAL    DESCKII'lION 


'   '  'r 


IW  !t 


I 


mont  that  no  larger  portion  ofnortli-castcin  AlinnoHota  is  unsuited 
to  scttlcniont  than  of  New  York.  Admit  all  tlial  is  charged 
against  the  district  eaat  of  Pokegoma  Falls  and  oxt(;nding  from 
Lake  Superior  ta  IJainy  Lake — that  it  is  a  sterile  waste  of  primary 
rock,  i^selpss  forests  and  desolate  Hvvami)S, — that  nineteen  twenti. 
eths  of  the  country  will  never  be  occuj)ied. — The  case  is  put 
strongly  ;  but  New  York  presents  its  fidl  parallel,  in  what  is 
known  as  John  Brown's  Tract,  or  tlie  Adirondack  liegion,  which, 
with  a  diameter  of  one  hundred  miles,  has  liitherto  resisted  the 
settlement  of  north-eastern  New  York.  Its  eastern  margin,  along 
Lakes  Chaniplain  and  George,  has  been  settled,  and  so  will  the 
plateaux  extending  along  the  immediate  Minnesota  shore  of  Lake 
Superior  be  found  desirable  to  the  emigrant,  as  well  i'or  the  mijier- 
al  wealth  of  the  rugged  coast,  as  for  the  fertility  of  the  inland 
lidges,  with  their  growth  of  sugar  maple.  Tiie  Minnesota  vicinity 
of  the  Vermilion,  Swan  and  Sandy  Lakes,  east  of  the  Mississippi, 
is  similar  in  its  geological  features  to  the  Adirondack  desert  east 
of  Lake  Ontario — it  is  frankly  surrendered  to  the  same  fate  ;  and 
iiaving  thus  cleared  our  decks,  we  will  proceed  to  further  points 
of  analogy  between  the  Empire  State  and  our  embryo  State, 

The  purpose  in  such  a  comparison  is  not  to  exhibit  features  of 
physical  resemblance — only  to  establish  an  equal  capacity  for  ag- 
riculture. There  arc  innumerable  lakes  in  northern  Minnesota 
but  New  York  has  a  considerable  surface  of  inland  waters,  while 
the  highlands  which  divide  the  Minnesota  strerims  are  always  cul- 
tivable, in  this  respect  differing  from  the  Catskills,  and  the  north- 
ern spurs  of  the  Allcghanies.  It  will  be  seen  from  the  annexed 
c'itails,  whether  the  equivalent  of  western  or  central  New  York 
cin  be  found  in  the  more  favored  sections  of  northern  Minnesota. 
The  materials  at  our  disposal  may  be  arranged  into  geographi- 
cal districts.  1,  The  IJainy  lliver  district.  2.  The  vicinity  of 
Ked  Lake.  3.  The  sources  of  the  Mississippi.  4.  The  valley  of 
the  lied  River,  and  5,  The  Otter  Tail  Lake  Iicgion.  Tiie  channel 
of  the  Mississ'ppi  from  Crow  AVing  to  Pokegoma  Falls — llie  future 
head  of  steamboat  navigation  on  that  river — is  presumed  to  be 
sufficiently  familiar  to  the  reauer. 

1.  The  Rainy  RivEuDisTmcT. — This  river,  after  emerging  frcin  the 
wilderness  of  peninsulas  and  islands,  which  confuse  the  ti  avelcr 
in  Rainy  Lake,  ilows  northwest  into  the  Lake  of  the  Woods,  its 
channel  constitnt'ng  thn  international  boundary.  In  Sir  Cf.oiu;e 
Simpson's  "  Overland  Journey  around  tlie  World,"  occurs  a  glowing 
description  of  Rainy  River  in  this  section  of  its  course. — "From 
Fort  Francis  downwards,"  writes  the  well-known  Governor   of  the 


OF   NORTllKKN    MINNKSOTA. 


4» 


Hudson  Bay  Company,  "a  strotch  of  noavly  a  huiiilreJ  miles,  it  is 
not  interru[)tu(l  l)y  a  Hiiij^Io  irnpodimont ;  wliiloycit   the   current   ift 
not  Htron;^  otioii^vli  rnivtorially  to  r(^tard  an  ascondinj^  truvoler.  Nor 
are  the  banlcH  li>s8  favoi-able  tf)  af^riculturo   than  the  waters   tlicm- 
sclves  to  navifj^ation  ;  resoujbling,  in  sotnc  measure,   thoHO  of  the 
Thames  near  IticJiinond.     From  tiie  very   brink  of  the   river   there 
rises  a  ji^entle  h1oj)o  of  }^rcen  sward,  crowned  in  many  places  with 
a  plentiful  growth  of  birch,  poplar,  beech,  elm  and  oak.     Is  it  too 
much,"  lie  continues  with  cntliusiasm,  "for  the  eye  of  philanthropy 
to  discern  throug'h  the  vista  of  futurity,  this  noble  stream,  connec- 
ting^ as  it  does  the  I'ertile  shores  of  two  spacious  lakes,  with  crowd- 
ed steamboats  upon  its  bosom  and  popuhjus  towns  on  its  borders  ?" 
If  this  is  a  faithful  description  of  the  river,  is  it  not  reasonable 
to  anticipate  that  the  valleys  of  the  streams,  which  the   map  dis- 
closes as  tributary  to  it  on  the  south,  are  equally  desirable  ?     One 
very  important  circumstance  remains  to  be  stated.     Mr.  Henry   K. 
ScHooi-CKAFT,  in  a  communication  to  Simjman's  Journal   of  Science, 
(March,  1855),  refers  to  "  recent  information  of  a   reliable  charac- 
ter," that  on  the  western   coast  of  ti»o    Lake   of   the   ^Voods,   and 
snitlh  of  the  wUlnmil  boundary,  lari^e  deposits   of   coal   exist, 

2.  TiiK  Vicinity  ok  IIku  Lake. — It  is  enough  to  characterize  this 
portion  of  Minnesota,  to  mention  the  success  of  the  missionary 
farm  at  the  soutliorn  extremity  of  Red  Lake.  ■  No  crop  is  surer  or 
more  abundant  than  Indian  corn — a  fact  significant  to  every  far- 
mer of  successful  agriculture.  The  outlet  of  Red  Lake  falls  into 
the  Red  River  of  the  North,  and  at  its  junction  with  that  stream  is 
represented  by  Dr.  Owen  as  a  hundred  feet  wide,  discharging  wa- 
ters of  a  reddish  brown  cast.  Such  a  circumstance,  in  the  case  of 
the  Missouri  river,  indicates  the  fertility  of  tlie  country  which  is 
drained. 

3.  The  Sources  of  the  Mississippi. — Pei-haps  a  district  of  five 
hundred  square  miles — about  the  area  of  Hennepin  county — must 
be  surrendered  to  the  wide  and  flattened  bed  of  the  Mississippi, 
before  it  forms  and  proceeds  through  a  clearly  defined  channel. 
This  undine  wilderness  is  described  by  Nicom.et  as  clogged  up  with 
intermediate  spaces  of  clear  water,  looking  like  channels ;  but 
among  whicli  it  is  ditlicult  to  discover  the  true  course  of  the  river, 
for  at  certain  seasijns  of  the  year  the  whole  is  nothing  more  than  a 
marshy  prairie.  Thence  to  Pokcgoin.i  Falls,  the  prominent  objects 
to  the  descending  traveler  are  the  Lakes  Pemidji,  Cass,  and  Wiui- 
bigoshish.  Of  these  we  give  a  few  particulars  from  well-known 
explorers.     Of  Lake  Pemidji,  Nicollet  remarks  : 

"It  is  a  ina^'iuliiJuaL  siio'jL  oi'  vv.iLoi',  from  ton  to   twelve    miles 


^ 


!^ 


50 


(iK<)(iKAI'IIU  Af,  Di:s(  HM'TION 


ii 


I'fl 


! 


,t 


k: 


III 


long,  with  a  broudth  of  fruin  four  to  five,  perfectly  clear  and  with- 
out islandn;  the  eyo  having,'  a  free  coininand  over  gently  swelling 
IuUh,  receding  and  tiiicklyv/ooded;  and  it  \h  Haid  that  no  river  but 
the  Mississippi  ''nipties  into  it,  8av(!  an  obscure  iidet  at  its  north- 
ern extremity,  i  ninst  confesn/'  adds  the  Swiss  savnaf,  "that  in 
crossing  it,  I  felt  melancholy,  that  even  within  my  artificial  optics 
I  could  not  descry  any  evidence?  of  civilization — no  cottage  of  tho 
agricultural,  no  meadows,  no  herds,  nor  any  of  those  cultivated 
fields,  whose  mellow  shades  contrast  so  gracefully  with  tho  foliage 
of  the  forest." 

Nicollet  describes  Lake  Cass  as  "uiK^her  beautiful  sheet  of  water 
studded  with  islands."  Dr.  J.  G,  Nonwoon,  of  Owen's  Survey,  says 
that  its  -waters  arc  clear,  and  the  islands  bear  red  cedar,  while 
along  the  shore,  which  fell  under  his  observation,  tho  hills  rise  to 
the  height  of  twenty  and  thirty  feet  above  tlie  lake  and  are  covered 
with  oak,  ash,  aspen,  pine,  and  some  small  birch,  the  low  grounds 
bearing  a  good  growtli  of  elm. 

Lake  Wiuiliigoshish  is  represented  by  Dr.  Norwood,  to  differ 
from  Cass  and  Pemidji,  in  not  being  clear  and  pure,  owing,  as  he 
conjectures,  to  some  jtecidiarity  of  its  bed.  It  is  about  twelve 
miles  in  diameter,  and  destitute  of  islands.  On  the  south-west,  the 
shores  are  lined  with  tamarac  swamps,  and  on  tho  north-cost  by  gen- 
tle undulations  bearing  oak,  maple,  and  other  hard  woods.  The  soil 
of  the  higher  lands  is  good,  and  corn  and  potatoes  can  be  cultivated 
to  good  advantage.  Dr.  N.  remarks,  that  tho  clay  beds  which 
abound  on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  contain  a  great  deal  of  calcare- 
ous matter,  and  when  mingled  with  the  sand  which  overlays  tliem, 
which  also  contains  limestone  gravel,  form  a  strong  rich  soil. 

Leech  Lake,  the  basin  of  which  is  skirted  on  three  sides,  by  the 
winding  channel  of  the  Mississiiii' — west,  north  and  east — is  an  in- 
teresting body  of  water,  thus  described  by  Nicollet: 

"The  circuit  of  Leech  Lake,  including  its  indentations,  is  not  less 
than  one  hundred  and  sixty  miles.  It  is  next  in  size  to  Red  Lake, 
which  is  said  to  be  200  miles  in  circumference.  The  former  has 
twenty-seven  tributaries  of  various  sizes.  A  solitary  river  issues 
from  it,  known  by  the  name  of  Leech  Lake  Eiver,  forming  an  im- 
portant outlet  from  one  hundred  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet 
wide,  with  a  depth  of  from  six  to  ten  feet.  It  has  a  moderate  cur- 
rent, without  any  obstruction,  arid  Hows  into  the  Mississippi  (not 
far  above  Pokegoma  i^alls,)  after  a  course  of  from  45  to  50  miles. 

"To  be  more  particidar  in  the  description  of  Leech  Lake,  I  may 
add  that  it  has  nine  large  bays,  presenting  six  prominent  points, 
and  its  depth  varies  from  six  to  ten  fathoms.     The  fish  of  the  lake. 


OF    NOUIIIKUN    MINM;»()TA. 


51 


the  wiM  rice  ol"  tlio  bays,  and  inaplo  suf^ar,  arc  tlic  three  groat 
natural  resources  nf  tlio  Chi[)|)C'wayH.  'I'lic  fisheries  are  abundant 
at  all  seasons,  but  it  is  principally  in  the  spriiij^  and  fall  that  they 
arc  rno,jt  so  and  are  carried  on  to  much  advantai^'e.  VVitii  two  nets, 
sot  over  nig'ht,  from  400  to  bOO  fish  may  be  calculated  u[)on  by  the 
next  morning'',  which  are  dried  for  winter  provisions.  *  *  The 
white  fish,  which  is  taken  in  Leech  Lake,  is  said  by  amateurs  to  be 
more  highly  flavored  than  even  that  of  Lake  Superior,  and  weighs 
from  three  to  ten  pounds.  As  the  name  indicates,  this  lake  swarms 
with  leeches,  and  amphibious  r(^ptilos.  There  are  several  species 
of  terrapin  and  turtle,  of  which  Mr.  Say  has  described  three  of  each 
kind  in  the  appendix  to  the  second  expedition  of  Jilajor  Long." 

The  rice-plant,  like  the  cranberry,  goes  far  to  redetni  the  marsh- 
es which  it  covers.     I)n.  Norwood  estimates  that  an  acre  of  this 
rico  is  nearly  or  (lultc  ctpial  to  an  acre  of  wheat  for  sustaining  life. 
Dr.  N.  thus  closes  his  description  of  the  sources  of  tlie  Mississippi: 
"  In  this  connexion,  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  remark,  that, 
so  far  as  the  mere  sui)port  of  life  is  concerned,  taking  into  account 
the  amount  of  labor  reciuired  to  do  it,  this  region  is  equal,  if  not 
superior,  to  many  portions  of  the  settled  States.    The  rice  fields, 
which   require  neither  sowing  nor  cultivating,   only   harvesting, 
cover  many  thousands  of  acres,  and  yield  all  that  is  essential  for 
bread-stulfs  ;  but  in  addition  to  this,  corn  can  be  cultivated  with  aa 
little  or  less  labor  than  in  the  middle  States.     Potatoes  far  su- 
perior in  si/.e  and   fiavor,   to  any  I  have  ever  seen  in  the  Ohio 
Valley,  arc  grown  with  little  attention  ;    and  turnips  and  beets 
produce  abundantly.     Extensive  natural  meadows  border  the  lakes 
and  streams,  the  luxurious  grasses  of  which  are  sweet  and  nutri- 
tious, and  eagerly  eaten  by  cattle  ;  while  the  streams  and  almost 
innumerable  lakes  abound  with  a  great  variety  of  fish  of  the  first 
quality,  and  which  may  be  taken  at  all  seasons  with  little  trouble. 
The  uplands  are  generally  covered  with  a  good  growth  of  both 
hard  and  soft  woods,  sufficient  for  all  the  wants  of  man.     The  su- 
gar maple  is  abundant,  sufficiently  so  to  yield  a  supply  of  sugar 
tor  a  large  population.     In  addif.on  to  all  this,  the  forests  are 
stocked  with  game,  and  the  lakes  and  rice-fields,  must  always,  as 
they  do  now,  attract  innumerable  flocks  of  water  fowl.  " 

4.  Thk  Valley  of  the  Red  River. — We  have  the  authority  of 
Capt.  JouN  Roi'E,  who  ascended  the  Red  River  of  the  North  in 
I84y,  that  the  average  depth  is  five  feet  at  the  junction  of  the 
Sioux  Wood  River,  and  fifteen  feet  at  Rembina.  Its  head  of  steam- 
boat navigation  is  about  46  deg.  23  min.,  where  the  stream  cuts 
deeper  into  the  clay,  which  forms  its  substratum  for  three  hundred 


V' 


:i 


'    :Sl 


52 


GEOGKAPHICAL    DEBORIITION 


Xf.    i:!!:i 


milv^R,  rendering  the  waters  turbid.  No  rapi^is  or  obstacles  occur 
to  the  Britis'  ine  or  beyond  ;  the  current  of  the  river  is  moderate, 
running  about  a  mile  and  a  half  an  hour  ;  the  western  bank  is  a 
vast  plain,  but  on  the  east,  vvhile  the  country  is  level,  a  belt  of 
timber  usually  adjoins  the  stream  ;  the  soil  is  congenial  to  the 
ash,  which  tree  attains  a  large  size  in  some  localities  ;  below  the 
mouth  of  the  Ked  Lake  Fork,  strong  chalybeate  springs  ooze  from 
the  clay-banks  ;  saline  springs  have  also  been  discovered  ;  and  in 
addition  to  these  particulars  Dr,  Owen  mentions  that  "the  air 
along  Red  River  from  the  mouth  of  the  Psihu  to  the  Pembina 
settlements,  (latitude  47  to  49)  is  scented  during  the  months  of 
June  and  July,  with  a  delightful  perfume  arising  from  the  wild 
roses,  which  form  a  thick  shrubbery  along  its  b-iuks. "- — Very  prob- 
ably, the  margins  of  the  Red  River  will  be  subject  to  inundation 
iu  the  Spring,  but  all  accounts  concur  that  no  more  productive  re- 
gion— the  soil  being  eminently  adapted  to  cereal  cultivation — has 
been  discovered  on  the  continent. 

5.  The  Ottf;r  Tail  Lake  Region. — Capt.  Pope,  '.n  his  exploration 
of  1849,  remarks  that  fcfr  fifty  miles  in  all  directions  around  Otter 
Tail  Lake,  is  the  garden  of  the  Northwest.  The  outlet  of  the 
Lake,  constitut'.ng  the  soujf'e  of  the  Red  River  of  the  North,  has 
been  very  favorably  described  by  Dr,  Owen.  It  presents  a  suc- 
cession of  lakes  and  lapids,  while,  at  other  points,  rolling  prairies 
extend  from  its  banks,  crested  with  beautifully  dispersed  groves 
of  timber.  It  was  i  i  this  section  of  Minnesota,  that  the  magne- 
sian  limestone  containing  silurian  fossils,  identical  with  those  in 
the  bluffs  of  the  Minnesota  and  the  Mississippi  below  St.  Paul, 
was  recognized  by  Dr.  0.  in  place — showing  that  the  primary 
formation,  which  divides  Minnesota  from  northeast  to  south- 
west, le  succeeded  to  the  northwest  by  the  ascending  series  of  sed- 
imentary rocks. 

I  have  repeated  the  remark  of  Capt.  Pope,  that  the  vicinty  of 
Otter  Tail  Lake,  for  fifty  miles  in  all  directions,  is  superior  to  any 
other  portion  of  Minnesota,'  to  Daniel  Rourer,  Esq.,  of  St. 
Paul,  who  has  frequently  traversed  the  district  in  question, 
and  that  gentleman  more  than  confirms  the  statement.  West- 
ward, for  at  leas:  one  hundred  miles,  or  to  the  great  plains,  he 
assures  me,  northward  to  Red  Lake,  if  not  beyond,  and  east  to  the 
Mississippi,  the  country  is  destined*  to  attract  and  sustain  a 
denser  population  than  the  Minnesota  Valley.  No  more  favorable 
distribution  cf  beautiful  prairie,  wood  and  timber,  can  be  ima- 
gined. The  lakes  are  numerous,  but  small,  and  almost  invariably 
Bkirted  with  timber,  the   sugar    maple    largely  prcpoiidcrutiiig. 


ROUTES    TO    KED    KIVER. 


53 


Seldom  is  the  traveler  out  of  sight  of  these  groves,  while  the  soil 
is  unsurpassed.  Mr.  R.  concurs,  that  the  whole  country  between 
the  meridian  of  Pokegoma  Falls,  on  the  Mississippi  River,  and 
the  Red  River  of  the  North,  is  sufficient  in  area  and  capacity,  to 
triumphantly  sustain  a  comparison  with  the  most  desirable  sec- 
tions of  New  York. 


APPENDIX    NO.    IV. 


ROUTES     THROUGR     MlN^fKSOTA   TO    THE     >fAVir,AnLS     WATERS    OF     THE     RED 

RIVER    OF    TliE    N0R''T]. 


Situated  as  Minnesota*  is,  with  a  length  from  South  to  North  of 
four  hundred  miles,  the  transverse  routes  connecting  the  Missis- 
sippi and  Lake  Superior  with  the  navigable  channel  of  the  Red 
River  of  the  North,  arc  quite  numerous.  They  will  be  described 
in  an  order  progressive  from  the  Southern  to  the  Northern  boun- 
dary of  the  State. 

1.  Southern  Interior  Route. — Travellers  may  leave  the  Missis- 
sippi opposite  Prairie  du  Chien  and  La  Crosse,  or  at  Winona,  and 
after  leaving  the  river  bluffs,  a  beautiful  plateau  is  reached  from 
which  streams  diverge  in  opposite  directions  to  the  Mississippi 
and  the  Minnesota.  In  addition  to  the  agricultural  advantages  of 
these  southern  counties,  unsurpassed  by  any  equal  area  on  the 
globe,  the  divide  between  the  sources  of  Root,  Zumbro  and  Can- 
non Rivers,  and  the  tributaries  of  the  M--nkato  and  Minnesota,  is 
very  favorable  for  the  passage  of  wai^gons.  The  Big  Woods,  a 
belt  of  forest,  extending  from  Northeast  to  Southwest  through  the 
prairie  districts  of  Minnesota,  ranging  in  breadth  from  twelve  to 
sixty  miles,  constitute  almost  the  only  serious  obstacle  to  a  party 
moving  North-westwardly  to  Red  River. 

2.    The  Route  from  Minneapolis  to  Breckknridqe. — This  route, 


,.IM 


54 


MINNESOTA   ROUTL.'i 


is    ■•'» 


which  with  an  extension  eastward  to  Stillwater,  of  twenty-five  miles, 
forms  the  main  line  of  the  Minnesota  and  Pacific  Railroad,  was 
fully  explored  in  the  summer  of  185t,  by  parties  under  charge  of 
C.  H.  Allek  and  Charles  C.  Smith,  Division  Engineers.     Mr.  Aixen 
who  conducted  the  survey  and  location  of  the  Western  half  of  the 
line,  (about  one  hundred  and  twelve  miles)  had  the  satisfaction  of 
communicating  particulars  previously  unpublished,  of  an  interest- 
ing region,  watered  by  the  tributaries  of  the  Upper  Minnesota, 
and  as  large  as  the  State  of  Massachusetts.    The  reconnoissance, 
conduc<^ed  by  Mr.  Smith,  was  of  the  Eastern  section  of  this  route, 
or  froia  Mi.'neapolis  westward  through  the  Big  Woods.    From 
the  notes  of  these  gentlemen,  it  appears  that  west  of  Minneapolis, 
the  first  ten  miles  is  undulating  prairie  ;  the  next  sixty  miles  trav- 
erses the  Big  Woods  :  about  one  hundred  miles  is  a  succession  of 
prairies,  scattered  with  groves,  and  diversified  by  lakes;  -while  the 
last  forty  miles,  to  the  mouth  of  Sioux  Wood  River,  is  through  a 
plain  or  savanna,  without  timber,  streams  or  lakes,  but  bearing  a 
remarkable  growth  of  nutricious  grass,  and  consequently  not  lack  * 
ing  moisture.    The  district  between  the  valleys  of  the  Upper  Min- 
nesota and  the  Mississippi,  (the  section  explored  by  Mr.  Allen,)  is 
represented  to  equal  in  beauty  and  fertility  the  richest  portions  of 
Southern  Minnesota.    The  timber  and  soil  in  ,the  "Big  Wo«ds,"  is 
thus  described  in  the  report  of  the  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Minnesota 
and  Pacific  Railroad  Company  : — 

"  From  a  point  ten  miles  west  of  Minneapolis,  extends  the  "Big 
Woods,"  a  dense  forest,  dotted  with  myriads  of  beautiful  lakes  and 
natural  meadows.    As  crossed  by  the  main  line  this  forest  is 
nearly  sixty  miles  in  breadth.    The  timber  is  very  heavy,  and  con- 
sists of  oak,  maple,  ash,  elm,  basswood,  black  walnut,  butternut, 
aspen,  and  second  growth  hickory.    Unlike  the  growth  of  most 
forests,  these  different  varieties  of  timber  are  distributed  in  the 
same  proportions  and  reach  as  great  perfection  upon  the  high  as 
the  lowlands,  indicating  an  unusual  degree  of  equality  in  the  soil, 
which  is  a  black  vegetable  mould  from  two  to  three  feet  in  depth, 
resting  on  a  subsoil  of  clay;  and  in  the  ordinary  acceptation  of  the 
term,  is  inexhaustible. 

"Among  the  few  scattered  tracts,  as  yet  brought  under  cultiva- 
tion, are  found  abundant  evidences  of  its  great  fertility.  Winter 
wheat,  corn,  oats,  and  potatoes,  sown  or  planted  in  an  opening 
barely  large  enough  to  admit  the  sun's  rays,  and  usually  not  half 
cultivated,  afford  large  returns.  The  numerous  meadows  yield  a 
full  supply  of  excellent  grass  for  the  subsistence  of  stock,  the  want 
of  which  forms  a  serious  drawback  upon  the  settlement  of  most 


■'■n\    • 
«,■'■ . 


TO    RED    RIVER. 


55 


timbered  countricH.  It  is  rapidly  filling  up  with  a  good  class  of 
settlers,  and  will  sooa  rival  any  portion  of  the  Territory  in  densi- 
ty of  population  and  agricultural  wealth." 

3.  From  St.  Cloud  by  way  of  the  Sauk  Valley  to  the  mouth  of 
Sioux  Wood  River. — The  valley  of  the  Sauk  River,  as  described  by 
Capt.  Pope  and  Gov.  Stevens,  is  extremely  fertile,  consisting  of  an 
agreeable  succession  of  small  prairies  and  woodlands.  After  leaving 
its  sources  and  the  numerous  beautiful  lakes  of  that  vicinity,  the 
route  to  the  head  of  navigation  on  Red  River,  1s  an  extended  sa- 
vanna, presenting  no  obstacle  to  waggons. 

4.  Crow  Wing  by  way  of  Otter  Tail  Lake. — It  is  deemed  ad- 
visable, in  the  first  instance,  to  describe  the  route  along  the  East- 
ern bank  of  the  Mississippi  River  from  St.  Anthony  to  Crow  Wing, 
being  a  section  of  the  branch  line  of  the  Minnesota  and  Faclfic 
Railroad.  Here  the  report  of  D.  C.  Shepard,  Esq.,  Chief  Engineer 
of  the  Company,  is  available  ; 

"The  surface  of  the  Upper  Mississippi  Valley,"  he  remarks,  "is 
pretty  evenly  divided  between  prairie  and  oak  openings,  with  oc- 
casional marshes,  bearing  a  fine  growth  of  tamarac.  An  excep- 
tion, to  this,  hc'wever,  is  the  western  slope  of  the  valley  from  St. 
Cloud  to  Crow  Wing,  which  is  principally  covered  with  a  heavy 
forest  growth.  The  soil  is  usually  of  a  light  sandy  character, 
though  much  move  fertile  than  its  surface  indicates.  Some  por- 
tions of  it  have  been  under  cultivation  for  many  years  without 
giving  any  signs  of  exhaustion,  and  an  examination  of  the  crops 
growL\  during  the  past  season,  is  conclusive  as  to  its  capability  of 
enduring  a  protracted  drought.  Although  it  cannot  be  called  a 
first  rate  Western  soil,  it  is  sure,  easy  of  tillage,  and  produces  well. 
The  accessibility  jf  this  valley  at  all  seasons,  by  means  of  excel- 
lent roads,  has  conduced  largely  to  its  nrosperity.  It  already 
numbers  many  flourishing  towns,  amonji  wtijch  are  Anoka,  St. 
Cloud,  Sauk  Rapids  and  Little  Falls." 

With  these  preliminary  statements,  we  proceed  ^  a  sketch  of 
the  route  above  indicated,  still  employing  Mr.  Shepard's  'anguage: 

"  The  region  between  Crow  Wing  and  Otter  Tail  Lake,  a  distance 
of  about  sixty  miles,  is  usually  represented  as  possessing  but  little 
agricultural  value,  except  in  some  few  isolated  portions,  but  is 
well  timbered  with  pine,  oak,  maple,  basswood  and  tamarac.  Im- 
mediately on  passing  the  summit  between  the  Mississippi  and  Red 
Rivers,  at  Otter  Tail  Lake,  a  decided  imprevement  in  the  soil  and 
general  aspect  of  the  country  occurs.  From  Otter  Tail  Lake  ^^ 
Pembina,  along  the  route  of  the  trail,  the  surface  is  rolling  prairifci 
interspersed  with  fine  groves  of  timber,  amply  sufficient  for  the 


?'j 


!k, 


56 


MINNESOTA    ROUTES 


!';!'• 


i  i 


!  ii 


u 


necessities  of  a  dense  population,  and  well  watered.  Its  soil  is 
universally  described  as  excellent,  and  many  do  not  hesitate  to  de- 
clare it  superior  to  any  other  in  the  Territory.  There  can  exist  no 
reasonable  doubt  of  its  perfect  adaptation  to  the  purposes  of  agri" 
culture." 

Canoe  Koutes  Through  Nouthkrn  Minnesota — An  examination  of 
the  map,  and  of  the  geographical  sketch  of  Northern  Minnesota, 
reproduced  in  this  Appendix,  will  indicate  that  travelers  may  pro- 
ceed by  water  communication  from  Crow  Wing  by  Gull  and  Leech 
Lakes,  and  from  Superior  by  the  St.  Louis  and  Savanna  rivers  to 
Sandy  Lake  and  the  Upper  Mississippi — both  routes  connecting  in 
Cass  Lake,  and  thence  proceed  through  Red  Lake,  and  the  nav- 
igable stream  forming  its  outlet  to  the  Red  River  of  the  North, 

As  there  is  a  probability  that  St.  Vincent,  or  Pembina, (which  is  the 
northern  terminus  of  the  branch  line  of  the  Minnesota  and  Pacific 
Railroad,)  or  the  Selkirk  settlements  near  the  mouth  of  the  Red 
River,  will  be  prominent  points  of  outfit  for  the  overland  trip  to 
New  Caledonia,  many  will  prefer  to  make  this  canoe  voyage,  and 
may  be  interested  by  a  sketch  of  its  incidents,  tiome  notes  of  such 
a  voyage  by  Maj.  E.  A.  C.  Hatch,  a  gentleman  long  resident  in  the 
Northwest,  have  been  politely  furnished,  and  are  appended  in  his 
own  form  of  a  daily  diary  : 

1853 — August  26. — Cold,  windy,  rainy  day.  We  made  a  por- 
tage to  Gull  Lake — distance  It  miles  ;  concluded  to  remain  the 
night  with  Mr.  Stateley,  government  blacksmith,  having  made  a 
start,  which  is  all  that  is  expected  on  a  vu)age  of  this  kind  for 
the  first  day. 

August  27.     Beautiful  morning.     Started  across   the   lake   with 
my  canoe,  a  small  bark  one,  and  my  crew  consisting  of  two   Chip- 
pewa half-breeds.     Crossed  the  lake  and   made    a  portage   of  one 
and  one-half  miles  into   another  lake.     We    make  these   portages 
very  quick  ;  the  manner  of  proceeding  is  as  follows  :  immediately 
upon  the  bow  of  the  canoe   touching    tiie  shore,   the  men   spring 
overboard  and  commence  unloading.     As  soon  as  this  is  finished, 
one  man  takes  the  canoe  and  paddles  upon  liis  head  and  starts  off 
on  a  trot,  the  other  man  gathers  the  lui.'-gage,  iiDUsisting   of  blank- 
ets, provisions,  cooking  utensils,  &c.,  and  trota  after  him,  and   the 
passenger   goes   trotting  on  behind.     We    passed   through  the  sec- 
ond lake  and  made  a  portage  of  two  miles  to  the  third  lake  ;  cross- 
ed that  and  made  a  portage  of  three  miles  to  the  fourth  lake  ;  this 
proved  to  be  more  of  a  marsh  than  lake,   the  men  being  often 
obliged  to  wade  and  drag  the  canoe.     It  was  only  about  one  and 
one-half  miles  through  it,  and  we  then  made  a  portage  of  one  mile 


TO    RED    RTVER. 


67 


into  Pine  River.  This  stream  where  we  entered  it  was  about  a 
stone's  throw  across  and  very  shallow.  After  running  up  it  about 
five  or  six  miles,  we  passed  through  a  large  rice  lake  where  we 
saw  a  number  of  Chippcwas  gathering  wild  rice.  We  passed 
through  this  lake  into  the  river  again  and  camped  for  the  night. 

August  28.  Fine  morning.  We  started  at  6  o'clock  ;  traveled 
on  up  Pine  River  about  one  and  a  half  miles  and  made  a  portage 
ot  six  miles  across  a  bond  and  to  avoid  rapids.  We  breakfasted 
at  the  upper  end  of  the  portage.  After  breakfast  we  pad  Jed  on 
up  the  river,  occasionally  passing  through  a  rice  lake,  until  12 
o'clock,  when  we  made  a  short  portage  into  the  fifth  lake.  This 
lake  was  about  one  and  a  half  miles  long  and  half  a  mile  wide; 
passed  through  it  and  made  a  portage  of  twenty  feet  into  the  sixth 
lake,  a  beautiful  lake  about  two  miles  across,  water  very  pure  ; 
crossed  it,  and  made  a  portage  of  half  a  mile  to  the  seventh  lak^. 
Crossed  thia  (one  mile)  and  made  portage  of  one  and  a  half 
miles  into  t' I  e  eighth  lake.  Passed  through  it,  and  portage  one 
mile,  into  tlic  ninth  lake.  We  dined  here  at  2^  o'clock.  This  lake 
is  about  five  miles  across  with  a  very  pretty  island  in  the  center. 
Crossed  the  lake  to  the  mouth  of  a  creek  ;  went  up  the  creek 
about  two  miles,  found  the  water  so  low  that  we  were  often  com- 
pelled to  wade  and  drag  the  cano  \  Passed  from  this  creel:  into 
the  tenth  lake,  which  was  quite  shallow,  several  large  rocks  show- 
ing themselves  above  water.  Crossed  it  and  entered  another 
creek;  made  our  way  up  this,  one  and  a  half  miles,  and  then  made 
portage  of  half  a  mile  into  the  eleventh  lake.  This  was  three  miles 
where  we  crossed  it.  Wo  entered  another  creek,  paddled  up  it 
about  two  miles,  and  into  the  twelfth  lake  :  it  liad  rather  an  insig- 
nificant appearance  when  we  first  entered  it,  but  we  soon  found  it 
worthy  of  notice  ;  it  increased  in  width,  every  point  we  passed. 
Night  overtook  us,  the  wind  blew  a  gale  and  we  had  to 
mal  e  for  shore,  and  barely  escaped  shipwreck.  This  was  Trout 
Lake,  so  called  from  the  Mackinaw  trout  which  are  taken  from  it. 

August  29.  Weather  unchanged — no  wind.  The  lake  looked 
beautiful  this  morning,  with  its  glassy  surface,  smooth  beach,  &c., 
but  we  had  no  time  to  admire  the  beauties  of  nature.  We  were 
ofif  at  G  o'clock.  Made  passage  of  one  and  a  half  miles  into  the 
thirteenth  lake — this  was  nearly  round  and  two  miles  across.  We 
crossed  it  and  made  portage  of  two  miles  to  a  creek,  descended 
the  creek  one-fourth  mile  into  Leech  Lake.  This  lake  is  probably 
twenty  miles  long  and  ten  wide  atitt*  greatest  width.  There  is  much 
good  soil  and  maple  timber  in  its  vicinity.  Numerous  islands,  at 
one  of  which  we  stopped  to  breakfast.    We  passed  through  the 


58 


MINNESOTA   EOUTES 


m 


l-i^ 


i'i 


,'f      •! 


lake  about  twelve  miles  to  the  mouth  of  a  creek,  ascended  the 
creek  seven  miles  and  entered  the  fifteenth  lake,  one  and  a  half  miles 
across.  After  crossing  this  v/c  made  a  portage  of  three  miles  into 
the  sixteenth  lake,  which  was  about  one  mile  across.  We  dined 
here — weather  very  warm.  Crossed  the  lake  and  made  a  portage 
of  one  mile  to  the  seventeenth  lake.  This  was  Cass  or  Red  Cedar 
Lake  ;  its  first  appearance  from  where  we  struck  it  was  that  of  a 
lake  about  three  miles  across,  but  after  crossing  this  we  passed 
through  a  natural  channel  or  canal  a  few  rods  long  into  the  main 
lake  about  ten  miles  wide.  We  crossed  and  reached  the  opposite 
shore  after  dark,  at  the  mouth  of  a  small  river  near  the  Missionary 
Station,  and  camped. 

August  30.  Weather  same.  We  traded  some  flour  with  a  half- 
breed  for  white  fish,  and  bought  a  few  potatoes  of  the  missionaries. 
We  paddled  up  the  creek  about  seven  miles  and  stopped  for  break- 
fast ;  ascended  the  stream  about  sixteen  miles  further  and  took 
dinner.  We  found  some  good  soil  on  the  banks  as  well  as  about 
Cass  Lake.  After  dinner  we  traveled  four  miles  more  up  stream 
and  entire;  the  eighteenth  lake.  We  passed  through  this  six  miles 
and  then  made  portage  of  two  and  a  half  miles  to  the  nineteenth 
lake,  where  we  camped  for  the  night. 

August  SI.  We  were  up  and  off  at  5  o'clock.  We  crossed  the 
lake  (two  and  a  half  miles)  and  made  portage  half  a  mile  into 
twentieth  lake.  Passed  through  this  four  miles  and  made  portage 
of  one  mile  into  twenty-first  lake,  about  two  miles  wide,  crossed  it 
and  stopped  for  breakfast.  We  here  left  the  waters  which  flow  into 
the  Mississippi  and  made  portage  of  one  and  a  half  miles  into  the 
twenty-second  lake.  We  passed  tlu'ough  this  lake  about  two  miles 
and  down  the  outlet  about  three  miles, when  it  widened  into  a  rice 
lake  in  which  were  a  large  number  of  Indians  gathering  rice,  and 
in  less  than  five  minutes  we  were  surrounded  by  thirty  or  forty 
canoes.  After  exchanging  news  with  them  we  passed  on  down 
the  outlet  about  two  miles  to  Grand  Portage.  We  here  left  our 
canoe,  made  up  our  packs,  and  started  across  the  portage.  We 
got  through  to  Hed  Lake  (fifteen  miles)  before  dark,  found  our 
trading  establishment,  and  our  missionary  ditto.  Went  to  the 
mission,  were  kindly  received  and  hospitably  entertained.  These 
missionaries  are  not  compelled  to  import  much  for  food,  raising 
an  abundance  from  their  own  gardens. 

Sept.  1,  1853. — Clear,  calm  morning;  Red  Lake,  with  its  unruf. 
fled  surface  and  surrounding  scenery,  was  truly  beautiful;  it  was 
much  the  largest  on  the  route,  probably  twenty  miles  wide  and 
thirty  long  and  connected  by  a  short  natural  canal  with  another 


1 

111.' 


TO   RED    IIIVEK. 


50 


nearly  as  large,  both  are  commonly  recognised  as  one  and  called 
"Red  Lake."  My  men  both  left  me  here,  one  pretendiug  that  he 
was  sick,  and  the  other  that  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  re- 
turn to  his  family;  but  a  rumor  of  a  disturbance  with  the  Sioux, 
and  the  possibility  of  meeting  a  party  of  tliem  when  we  should 
reach  the  prairies,  probably  was  the  real  cause  of  their  desire  to 
return,  but  as  I  wasenabledtosupply  their  places  immediately  with 
two  brothers,  who  resided  here,  and  were  reputed  excellent  voya- 
geurs,  I  did  not  object  to  the  change.  I  had  some  difficulty  in  pro- 
curing another  canoe,  but  finally  succeeded  in  purchasing  a  small 
one  for  six  dollars.  As  my  man  desired  to  make  some  preparations 
for  the  trip,  such  as  making  moccasins,  paddles,  &c.,  I  concluded 
to  spend  the  day  with  the  missionaries.  I  was  entertained  by  them 
with  a  history  of  their  settlement,  progress  and  future  hopes  in  re- 
gard to  the  civilization  of  these  Indians.  I  could,  and  can  do  no 
less  than  wish  them  success,  but  I  fear  they  have  imposed  upon 
themselves  a  hopeless  and  a  thankless  task.  The  Indians  have 
raised  more  corn  and  potatoes  than  they  could  consume  for  several 
years  past,  and  we  had  upon  our  table  excellent  bread  made  from 
wheat  raised  here  and  ground  in  a  hand-mill. 

Sept.  2. — Beautiful  morning,  slight  breeze,  but  not  enough  to  de- 
tain us.  We  were  off  at  nine  o'clock,  were  four  hours  crossing  the 
lake  to  the  outlet;  we  stopped  to  dine  and  then  '-an  dowi  the  river 
until  dark  and  camped.  This  stream  is  large  en^  igh  ■'apparently 
to  float  any.  steamer  that  navigates  the  Upper  Mississippi.  We 
saw  great  numbers  of  ducks  and  geese,  I  also  saw  a  woodcock  fly 
across  the  river.  A  heavy  shower  passed  over  us  soon  after  we 
camped  and  we  got  well  soaked.  We  were  much  troubled  with 
musquitoes  at  this  camp. 

Sept.  3. — Very  foggy  morning.  We  started  at  five  o'clock,  trav- 
eled down  stream  until  eight  o'clock,  stopped  for  breakfast;  while 
eating  it  commenced  raining.  We  found  growing  here,  near  the 
bank,  large  quantities  of  plums  and  high-bush  cranberries  ;  the 
banks  were  literally  red  with  the  latter  in  many  places  from  this 
point  down  to  the  mouth  of  Thief  River. 

Wo  paddled  on  and  it  soon  cleared  off  and  was  quite  pleasant 
until  two  o'clock,  when  we  halted  to  dine;  after  dinner  it  again 
commenced  raining  and  we  travelled  in  the  rain  until  half-past  six 
o'clock,  when  we  camped  for  the  night,  being  uncomfortable,  bed- 
ding quite  damp. 

Sept.  4.  Cool  and  cloudy,  off  at  six  o'clock,  current  stronger, 
breakfasted  at  eight;  passed  first  rapid  at  ten,  a  favorite  place  of  the 
Chippewas  for  spearing  sturgeon  which  run  up  there  in  the  spring 


'  it. 


■I 


i 


ri: 


^1 


m 
h 


\ 


GO 


MINNESOTA    KOUTEB 


in  great  numbers.  We  came  in  aight  of  the  first  prairie,  after  pas- 
sing one  or  two  more  rapids,  about  eleven  o'clock;  this  was  the 
mouth  of  Thief  River  and  our  point  of  debarkation.  Our  ob- 
ject in  taking  the  land  route  from  this  place,  was  to  save  time,  as 
we  could  go  afoot  to  the  mouth  of  the  Pembina  River  in  less 
time  tha'i  to  follow  the  Red  Lake  and  Rod  River,  the  distance  be- 
ing probably  not  one-fourth  as  great.  We  sf)on  made  a  cac/ie  of 
our  canoe,  a  few  pounds  of  flour,  potatoes,  &c.,  taking  with  us  our 
blankets  and  a  little  corn  broad,  which  we  had  procured  at  Red 
Lake,  depending  upon  our  guns  for  provisions.  We  started  on, 
traveled  one  mile  across  prairie  and  then  struck  into  a  slough'  in- 
terspersed with  poplar  thickets;  this  was  probably  six  or  seven 
miles  across  and  the  water  two  feet  deep  the  greater  part  of  the 
distance,  through  which  we  were  compelled  to  wade;  the  grass  was 
about  five  feet  high,  which  made  it  very  tiresome,  but  we  got 
through  it  very  well  considering  the  shortness  of  our  legs  and 
depth  of  the  water.  Traveled  until  dark,  striking  into  the  cart 
road  from  St.  Paul  about  sunset.  We  were  compelled  to  camp 
without  water  for  cooking;  very  unpleasant,  having  so  much  more 
than  was  needed  in  our  garments.  Went  dinnerlcss  and  supper- 
less  to  bed  in  a  clump  of  poplars;  rained  all  night. 

Sept,  5. — Cool  morning;  started  on  at  half  past  five  o'clock.  We 
reached  water  at  seven,  called  Snake  River,  the  snakes  may 
have  been  there  but  the  river  had  disappeared,  we  found  water 
enough  fdr  our  purposes,  however,  in  the  holes,  and  took  breakfast. 
We  travelled  over  a  prairie  until  ten  o'clock,  then  through  a  pop- 
ar  thicket  two  miles;  crossed  Snake  River  again,  found  some  water 
at  this  point;  on  over  prairie  andthrough  timber  until  half  past  one 
o'clock;  stopped  to  dine  at  Tamarac  River,  ni.  little  stream; 
prairie  chickens  and  pheasants  for  dinner.  Travelled  over  prairie 
balance  of  the  day  and  camped  at  dusk  in  a  hollow;  not  much  tim- 
ber, plenty  of  water.  We  here  met  a  party  of  Englishmen  who  had 
been  out  on  a  hunt  and  were  on  their  way  to  St.  Paul. 

Sept.  C. — Took  breakfast  at  camp;  on  over  prairie  fifteen  miles 
and  dined  at  one  of  the  Two  Rivers.  Travelled  slow,  as  we 
could  not  reach  Pembina  in  one  day  we  concluded  to  make  two 
easy  days.  S()il  excellent  and  timber  increasing  in  quantity  and 
quality.  Crossed  the  other  river  at  four  o'clock;  found  collector  of 
customs  and  another  man  camped  here  with  horse  and  cart  and 
concluded  to  stop  over  one  night  with  them;  dried  buffalo  meat  for 
supper. 

Sept.  9. — Travelled  over  prairie,  in  sight  of  timber  most  of  the 
time;  twenty  miles  to  Pembina;  crossed  river  in  a  canoe;  river  ten 


% 

4 


It* 


TO  KKD    BIVEB. 


Oi 


feet  deep;  banks  thirty  feet  high  on  west  side;  higher  on  east 
bank.  Soil  excellent,  timber  plenty;  five  houses  occupied,  all  on 
west  side;  one  mile  to  the  49th  parallel. 

Snjpt.  10. — I  remained  at  Pembina  thu  eighth  and  ninUi  to  re- 
cover from  the  latigue  of  the  trip.  Started  to-day  at  12  o'clock 
for  Pembina  Mountain,  or  St.  Joseph,  as  it  is  now  called. 
We  traveled  over  the  prairie  thirty  miles,  and  readied  the  moun- 
tain in  good  time,  liaving  taken  advantage  of  an  opportunity 
which  presented  itself  for  a  ride.  The  i)rairie  to  day  was  a  rich, 
black  soil,  covered  with  a  very  heavy  growth  of  grass,  iiixcd 
with  wild  pea  vine,  making  the  finest  grazing  district  I  have  yet 
seen.  Tiie  immediate  valley  of  Pembina  River  is  well  timbered, 
and  our  course  was  nearly  parallel  with,  and  not  far  from  it. 

Sept.  11. — As  it  was  dark  when  I  reached  here,  1  arose  early  to 
satisfy  my  curiosity,  that  is,  to  see  the  mountain.  It  was  a  lovely 
morning,  and  I  walked  to  the  summit — probably  one  hundred  and 
fifty  feet  high,  and  is  nothing  more  than  the  river  bluff,  which 
here  breaks  off,  running  off  at  a  riglit  angle  from  the  river,  and 
not  appearing  again  near  it  below.  But  still,  insignificant  as  this 
hill  appeared  to  me,  compared  with  what  I  had  expected,  tlie  view 
was  well  worth  the  trouble  of  the  ascent.  At  my  feet  lay  tiie  vil- 
lage, consisting  of  twelve  log  houses  and  fifty  skin  lodges.  In  the 
rear,  the  bluff  stretched  away,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  cov- 
ered with  burr  oaks.  Beyond  the  village  was  the  prairie,  with 
cattle  and  horses.  Taking  it  all  together,  it  was  certainly  a 
lovely  spot.     Remained  here  until 

Sept.  14. — Fine  morning — started  for  home — went  to  Pembina — 
crossed  the  river  and  camped, 

Sept.  15. — Rainy,  disagreeable  morning.  Went  to  q,  point  of 
timber  and  dined — to  our  old  camp  at  first  of  Two  Rivers  for  the 
night. 

Sept.  16. — Started  at  sunrise — went  to  second  river  to  break- 
fast, On  across  third  river,  and  took  dinner  on  tlu  prairie. 
While  eating  dinner,  we  were  joinol  by  a  small  party  of  Chippe- 
was  with  a  Sioux  scalp  on  a  polo.  After  dinner  we  went  to  old 
camp  for  the  night,  (where  wo  met  the  Englishmen.)  This  I 
think  was  one  of  the  worst  nights  I  ever  passed  upon  the  prairie 
in  the  summer.  It  rained  until  near  daylight,  and  there  was  not 
a  dry  thread  about  the  camp.  The  wind  blew  a  pcrlect  luuricano, 
and  the  lightning  was  so  incessant,  and  the  continuous  roll  of 
thunder  so  deafening  that  it  was  impossible  to  sleep. 

Sept.  n. — It  was  a  clear,  fine  morning.  We  did  not  travel  very 
fast  today.  Siuppivl  ut  Tanuii'ac  River  to  dy  our  blankets; 
cimped  at  Snake  River. 


I 


eg 


MINNESOTA    ROUTE   TO    RED   RIVEK. 


If  |l 
I 
I 


Sepi.  18. — Started  early.  Went  to  second  crossing  of  Snake 
River  to  breakfast.  Traveled  on  across  prairie  and  through  the 
slough,  and  reached  our  canoe  about  sunset.  Soon  commenced 
raining,  and  rained  all  night. 

Sept.  19. — Started  up  river — killed  a  few  ducks — camped  at 
half  past  six — rained  all  day. 

Sept.  20. — Fine  morning  once  more.  Oft'  before  sunrise.  We 
made  a  very  good  run  to-day,  and  killed  ])lenty  of  ducks,  so  that 
at  night  when  we  camped,  we  concluded  to  eat  our  fdl  once  more, 
having  been  half  starved  for  the  last  week.  One  of  my  men  had 
brought  alung  some  buffalo  marrow  fat,  which  he  had  procured  of 
some  half-breeds  at  Red  River,  and  Jio  used  that  for  s/iortning,  as 
he  called  it.  lie  cooked  about  four  (quarts  of  potatoes  which  we 
had  taken  from  our  cache — made  the  flour  into  bread,  and  boiled 
sixteen  ducks.  Three  Indians  were  traveling  in  company  with  us 
in  another  canoe;  wc  of  course  invited  them  to  sup  ■^vith  us. 
When  wc  had  finished,  there  was  not  a  particle  of  provisiuns  left, 
except  three  or  four  ducks  that  were  reserved  for  breakfast,  and 
had  not  been  cooked. 

Sept.  21. — Off  at  half  past  five  o'clock  ;  did  not  stop  once  during 
tlic  day  ;  reached  Red  Lake  at  two  o'clock,  and  the  Missionary 
Station  before  dark. 

Remained  at  Red  Lake  the  22nd,  and  started  on. 

Sepit.  23. — Wc  crossed  the  portage  and  left  in  our  canoe  at  three 
o'clock  ;  on  up  the  creek  ;  through  Rice  Lake  ;  up  the  creek  into 
Lake  No.  ^^2  ;  across  portage  one  and  a  half  miles  to  Lake  No.  21 
and  camped, 

Sept.  24. — Started  across  lake  at  five  o'clock  :  crossed  portage 
one  mile  to  Lake  No.  20;  across  lake  four  miles,  portage  quarter  of 
a  mile  to  Lake  No.  19  ;  across  lake  two  and  a  half  miles  and 
breakfasted  ;  crossed  portage  two  and  a  half  miles  through  lake 
and  down  creek  to  Cass  Lako. 

Sept.  25. — Started  before  daylight,  in  order  to  get  across  lake 
before  wind  should  blow,  but  were  compelled  to  put  behind  a  point 
soon  after  daylight  and  were  wind  bound  four  hours  ;  started  on 
at  half  past  eleven  and  camped  within  a  half  mile,  and  in  sight  of 
Leech  Lake. 

Sep/.  20. — Started  early  ;  through  Leech  Lake  -,  up  creek  ;  over 
portage  three  miles  ;  lako  one  and  a  half  miles,  portage  quarter 
to  Trout  Lake  ;  tlirongh  it  and  down  creek  two  miles,  across 
lake  three  miles;  portage  one  mile  into  creek  and  down  creek,  one 
and  a  half  miles  into  Lake  No.  10  ;  through  lake  and  down 
another  creek,  found  it  long,  and  made  a  portage  into  Lake  No.  9, 


CLIMAT()LO(*Y    OF  MINNESOTA. 


68 


through  it ;  i)ortago  one  mile  into  Lake  No.  8,  thron^^h  lake, 
portage  half  a  mile  to  Lake  No.  7;  through  lake  over  portage,  Sec, 
and  camped  on  Pine  Kiver.  p 

Sept.  27.--Worked  hard  all  day  ;  made  twenty-two  milcH  of 
portages  besides  tiic  canoeing. 

Sept,  28. — Arrived  at  Agency  at  nine  o'clock. 


APPENDIX    NO.    V 


Climatology  of  Mlvnesota. 


[Extract  from  a  Report  of  D.  C.  Shepard  Esq.,  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Minnesota  and 
Pacific  Railroad  Company,  January  12,  1858.] 

No  region  which  at  present  engages  the  public  mind,  as  a  field 
for  settlement,  has  been  so  grossly  misrepresented  in  re"-ard  to 
peculiarities  of  climate  as  Minnesota.  Fabulous  accounts  of  its 
Arctic  temperature,  piercing  winds,  and  accompanying  snows  of 
enormous  depth,  embellish  the  columns  of  the  Eastern  press,  to  the 
no  little  injury  of  this  Territory.  An  examination  of  this  subject,. 
and  especially  in  relation  to  the  snows  and  winds  of  winter  as 
opposed  to  the  operation  of  lines  of  railroad,  seems  necessary  to 
correct  existing  prejudices,  and  fortunately  the  means  arc  at  hand 
for  conducting  this  examination  with  an  exactness  nearly  reachino' 
mathematical  precision.  The  data  employed  arc  compiled  from 
the  "Army  Meteorological  Kegister,"  and  " Blodgett's Climatology 
of  the  United  States, "  both  standard  authorities  based  upon  the 
system  of  meteorological  observations  which  have  been  conducted 
by  the  Surgeons  of  the  United  States  Army,  and  other  scientific 
gentlemen  through  a  series  of  upwards  of  thirty  years. 

In  the  following  table  illustrative  of  the  temperature  of  Minne- 
sota, St.  Paul  is  inserted  in  the  place  of  Ft.  Snelling,  (six  miles 
distant,)  where  the  observations  were  made.  The  column  headed 
«*  No.  of  years "  gives  the  duration  of  the  observations  at  each 
•tation  :_jj 


w 


< 

t 

1^ 

< 

Ph 

a, 

H 

H 

IM 

t 

y. 

o 

w 

133 
H 

1-5 


9 


u 

u 

n 
o 

V. 


0<x     M 


I    ^ 

I  IT  fH  ^  1- Tl  I"  l5^0 


•  O  O  «  —  'a 


u 


w 
H 

I 


(A 
W 
H 


'ft. 

u 
H 


bo 


-«1       H 


S 


be 


o 
y 

s 

H 
z 


o  ,4;  2  -o  2  "S 
f/  -:  i-s  O  o  !> 


c  ® 


0.05 

s  >- 


4> 

u 

o 
0. 


lo  r— «  cc  «o  -^ 

CO  F^  fH  p-H  CO 


•  ••*-•*• 

•  'hH   ,  s  * 

.  *'.  ■  ter*  =< 
TT   O  4)  Q   «!  ■" 

P"  a  cs  Oq 

y.  P  DC  P  K  •/;         . . . ^. 

>C-H«0'0fH05i— ia»t-<>OC^«i-lr-li 
00  O  rH  1-^  I— t  fH  fH  f— (  CI  C4 


:h  > 


•t'5 


;5< 


^  z.^ 


s  a 


a 
o_r 

bo  u 
a  Z 


_2   BIS 


^. 


bow 


u  u,  s  5  o 


0&: 

o   •. 


5  O^^ 


Cd    as 


O  t-  'ft  CO 

CO 


-fCCOMMjl-iOiO  CD«DC1 

e-«  —  — 1  i-c  I 


S    4-1 

O  V 

s  "^  ■ 
*-  :^  • 


.t:(i<; 

C3^ 

re 

O   HI 


COCS  i-HrHf-HcHr-H  i-H 


ft- 


be 


w 
H 


«   CllK 


^ 


T3'i:'gi 


0,^    O 


.   O   cj 


•,a 


■~  -'ajS  .2.- 


bOo) 


^^T^g"? 


s&s- 


^  a>'«  ^t; 


«iKc/.  I 


c 


o 
bC   •■ 


®      —  . 


I  *5S  w  fC  M 


CMMATOLOOV    OF    MINNKflOTA. 


60 


Takiiijr  a  Map  of  the  United  States  and  applying  to  it  lines  of 
mean  totnperatnro  for  the  seasons  and  year,  passin-j  tlirou;?h  the 
places  indicated  in  the  foregoing  table,  we  find  that  while  the  win- 
ter temperature  of  St.  Paul  does  not  fall  below  the  average  of 
places  on  its  ])arallel  of  latitude,  its  spring  toniperaturo  coincides 
with  that  of  Central  Wisconsin,  Nortliorn  Illinois,  Southern  Michi- 
gan, Central  Xow  York  and  M.issachusetts,  its  summer  with  that 
of  Central  Wisconsin,  Northern  Illinois,  NorlIi(n-n  Ohio,  Central 
and  Soutliern  Pennsylvania,  and  Xow  Jersey,  its  autumn  with  that 
of  Central  Wisconsin,  Xortliern  New  York,  a  small  part  of  North- 
ern Pennsylvania,  NDrlhcrn  V(n'inont  and  Southern  Maine,  and  its 
entire  year  witli  that  of  Central  Wisconsin,  Central  New  York, 
Southern  New  Hampshire  and  Southern  Maine. 

Considering  this  sul)ject  with  reference  to  the  extremes  of  latitude 
touched  by  these  isothermal  lines,  we  discover  that  St.  Paid  has  a 
temperature  in  s[)ring  equal  to  Chicago,  which  is  two  and  a  half 
degrees  of  latitude  south,  in  summer  e(|ual  to  Philadel[)hia  five  de- 
grees south,  in  autumn  equal  t6  Northern  New  York  one  and  a  half 
degrees  south,  and  during  the  whole  year,  ci^ual  to  Central  New 
York  two  degrees  soutii. 

These  statements  do  not  admit  of  the  slighest  doubt  or  question, 
no  matter  how  widely  they  may  differ  from  preconceived  opinions, 
for  they  are  founded  on  facts  of  experience  which  hare  occupied 
an  entire  generation  in  their  development. 

This  condition  of  temperature  not  only  obtains  in  Minnesota,  but 
it  is  a  well  established  fact  that  there  extends  hundreds  of  miles 
to  the  north  west  of  her  an  immense  area  of  fertile  and  cultivable 
soil,  possessed  of  a  climate  hardly  inferior  in  warmth  to  her  own 
The  closing  chapter  of  Blodgett's  Climatology  treats  so  directly  of 
the  climate  and  resources  of  this  vast  region  that  it  is  copied  near- 
ly entire  as  an  appendix  to  this  report. 

The  obstruction  opposed  by  sn(nvs  to  the  rapid  and  regular  pass" 
age  of  trains  is  among  the  chief  difficulties  of  winter  operation 
and  in  order  to  submit  in  the  plainest  and  most  concise  manner  pos- 
sible the  uiiignitude  of  this  obstacle  as  found  here,  in  comparison 
with  other  districts,  a  table  of  mean  result3,'compiledfrom  the  same 
sources  with  the  preceding,  is  here  introduced. 

The  results  given  in  the  table  are  all  reduced  to  water,  but  in 
order  to  convert  them  into  equivalents  of  snow  we  have  only  to 
consider  the  figures  in  the  columns  as  representing  feet  and  deci- 
mals of  a  foot  The  rule  adopted  in  the  "Register"  giveii?  ten 
inches  of  snow  as  equivalent  to  oneinchof  water,  but  the  proportion 
of  twelve  to  one  is  believed  to  be  more  correct,  particularly  as  re- 
gards snows  of  our  latitude. 


m 


CLIMATOLOGY 


MLAN  FALL  OP  RAIN  AND  MELTED  L^NOW  AT  VARIOUS  PLACES  FOR  THE: 
DIFFERENT  SEASONS  AND  THE  ENTIRE  YEAR. 


innii 


pii 


ALSO,  THE  MAXIMUM  AND  MINIIILM  FALL  DURING  THE  WINTER  MONTHS. 
PEnn  IN  INCHES  AND  DECJilALS  OF  AN  I»'CH. 


FLACES. 


Saint  Paul,  Min 

Muiitreal,  Canada 

Houlton,  Me 

Eastport,,  Me 

Portsmouth,  N.  H.... 

Hanover,  N.  11 

Burlington,  Vt 

Cambridge,  Mass 

Worceator,  Mass , 

New  York  City 

Plattsbiirg,  N.  Y 

Potsdr.m,  N,  Y 

Utica,N.  Y , 

Rochester,  N.  Y 

Fort  Niagara,  N.  Y.., 

Pittsburg,  Pa 

Hudson,  O 

Cincinnati,  0 , 

Detroit,  Mich 

Sault  St.  Marie,  Mich 

AthiKJ,  III 

Muscatine,  Iowa 

Milwankee,  Wis  

Green  Bay,  Wis 

Portajje  City,  Wis. .. 
Beloit,  Wis 


•P  INO 

Mean. 


C.61 

11.54 

7.62 

8.88 

9.03 

!».90 

7.41 

10.85 

10.89 

U.Gfi 

8.33 

C.'ii) 

9.26 

6.82 

6.8: 

9.38 

9.76 

12.14 

8.61 

5.41 

12.20 

11.19 

6.60 

9.00 

5.58 

13.16 


sum'r.!  aut'n. 

!| 
Mean.  Mean. 


!  10.92 

jU  18 

!  11.92 

10.05 

9.21 

11.40 

10.83 

11.37 

10.71 

11-64 

1003 

10.15 

12.83 

8.86 

9.81 

3.87 

8.87 

13.70 

9.29 

I  S.1'7 

13.30 

'608 

I  9.70 

14..15 

il).46 

18.12 


5.98 

16.C0 

9.95 

9.86 

8.95 

10,60 

9.82 

12.57 

13.51 

9.93 

1005 

8.38 

9.76 

9.38 

8.68 

8.23 

6.16 

9.90 

7.41 

10.76 

!  9.20 

;io.34 

I  6.80 
j  7.84 
!  7.63 
10.44 


WINTBII. 


TEAB. 


Mini.  I  Mean    Maxi 


I  Mean. 


0.35 


:.02 
8.91 
4.44 


4.99 
2.90 


3.23 

4.39 


2.84 
2.85 


2.90 
1.92 


1.92 
7.i6 
7.48 

10.61 
8.38 
9.10 
6.02 
9.89 

11.85 

10.39 
:.95 
3.90 
8.72 
6.38 
6.41 
7  48 
8.00 

11.15 
4.86 
0.18 
7.10 
6.72 
4.20 
3.:i6 
2.,"^ 
6.43 


3.56* '125.43 
ii47.28 


10.00 
11.95 
11.08 


19.27 
9.33 


9.24 
11.97 


I  6.01 
11.67 


4.80 
3.84 


136.97 

!.19.39 

:  35.67 

41.00 

S4.ll 

44.48 

146.96 

'43.65 

;33.39 

28-63 

)40.57 

;3044 

■31.77 

34.96 

,32.79 

46.89 

,30  07 

31.35 

'4L80 

144.33 

27.20 

i  34.65 

27.49 

48.15 


No. 

of 

Years» 


19 
2 
9. 

8: 

13 
18 
20 
12 
13 
14 
10 
20 
19 
19 

18 

4 

20 
12 
16 
10 
10 
7 

9 
4 


*  lu  the  Winter  of  1819.    The  next  lugs  fall  wiis  in  the  Winter.of  1«37  —2.96  Inches. 

Without  going"  into  a  detailed  review  of  the  contents  of  the  fore- 
going table,  which  presents  the  facts  in  a  light  that  argument  can- 
not strengthen,  it  may  be  well  to  inquire  what  proportion  of  the 
winter  precipitation  is  in  the  form  of  snow,  and  in  the  absence  of 
positive  knowledge  we  may  arrive  at  general  conclusions  by  other 
means. 

Since  HouUon,  Hanover,  Plattsburg,  Montreal  and  Sault  St.  Marie 
coincide  in  mean  winter  temperature  with  St.  Paul,  we  must  infer 
that  the  precip.itation  at  those  places  assumes  the  form  of  snow  in 
the  same  proportion  as  here.  Admitting  this,  and  supposing  the 
enUre  winter  precipitation  to  be  a  successive  accumulation  of  snows, 
the  resulting  depths  would  be  ai  follows,  viz  :  Average  annual 
depth  at  St.  Paul,  2  feet ;  Houlton,  1^  feet ;  Hanover,  9  feet  ; 
Plattsburg,  5  feet  ;  Montreal,  7  feet  ;  Sault  St.  Marie,  5  feet. 
Maximum  depth  at  St.  Paul,  ^  feet;  Houlton,  10  feet;  Plattsburg, 
9|  feet;  and  Sault  St.  Mario,  11^  feet.    It  is  hardly  necessary  to 


OF   MINNESOTA. 


67 


add  that  such  immense  depths  of  enow  are  never  known,  and  it 
must  fol'ow  that  a  great  part  of  the  fall  at  all  these  localities  is 
dissipated  during  the  higher  fluctuations  of  temperature.  This  is 
confirmed  by  Mr.  Blodgett,  who  estimates  the  average  depth  of 
snow  constantly  occupying  the  ground  in  winter  among  the  eleiiatei 
and  Northern  districts  of  New  England  at  two  feet,  and  the  experi- 
ence of  the  present  winter  at  St.  Paul  is,  that  out  of  a  total  fail  of 
upwards  of  twenty  inches  of  snow,  the  depth  on  the  ground  has  at 
no  time  exceeded  six  inches. 

Although  no  reliable  evidence  can  be  adduced  upon  this  point,  it 
seems  entirely  safe  to  assume  that  the  average  of  extreme  depths 
of  snow  in  Minnesota,  during  the  nineteen  years  through  which 
the  observations  extend,  does  not  exceed  ten  inches,  and  it  is  cer. 
tain  that  the  average  here  falls  quite  below  that  in  Wisconsin,  Il- 
linois, Michigan  or  New  York,  and  very  far  below  that  in  the  Eas- 
tern States. 

The  rapid  decrease  in  winter  precipitation  north  and  northwest 
from  Central  Illinois  is  worthy  of  particular  note  in  this  connection. 
It  will  bo  seen  that  at  Athens,  Illinois,  the  mean  fall  is  7.1  inches; 
at  Beloit,  6.43  inches;  at  Milwaukee,  4.2  inches;  at  Green  Bay, 
3.36  inches;  at  Portage  City,  2.82  inches;  while  at  St.  Paul  it  is 
only  1.92  inches. 

The  force  of  the  wind,  which  frequently  converts  even  moderate 
falls  of  snow  into  formidable  barriers  to  the  passage  of  trains,  is 
another  element  requiring  attention,  and  resort  is  again  had  to  the 
Army  Register  for  the  purpose  of  illustrating  this  subject.  In  the 
succeeding  table  will  be  found  the  mean  force  of  the  wind  for  a 
term  of  years,  expressed  in  whole  numbers  and  decimals  under  the 
classification  of  forces  laid  down  in  the  "  Register."* 


*Ia  this  classification,  0  Hjgnifies  a  calm,  1  a  barely  perceptible  brc'  '.e,  2  a  gentle 
breeze,  3  a  moderate  breeze,  1  a  brisk  breeze,  and  so  on  to  10,  wliicli  represents  a 
violent  hurricane. 


*■ 


68 


CLIMATOLOGY  OF  MINNESOTA. 


Ji^le  skomntf  the  3Imn  Force  of  the  Wind  at  various  places  during  the  months  of  Ji'Miary, 
February,  March,  and  December,  in  each  Year  for  a  Scri  es  of  Years, 


PLACES. 


Fort  SnelliDg,  Min.,  near 
Ht.  Paul 

Fort  Trumbull,  Now  Lon- 
don, Conn 

Fort  Hamilton,  NewVork 
City 

Fort  Niagara,  Now 
York 

Plattsburp  Harriicks. 
PlattHhurg,  New  York. 

Port  Sullivan,  Eastport, 
Maine 

Port  Constitution,  Porti- 
month,  N.  H 

Alleghany  Arfienal,  Pitts- 
burg, Pa 

Detroit  Barracks,  Detroit 
Mich 

Port  AtkinHon,     Winne- 
shiek County,   Iowa . . 

Fort  Leavenworth,  Kan- 
sas  • 


1346 


n  5 


1.59 
2.53 


1847 


1840 

1.72|1.G3 
2.85 


I 
3.28i3.43 


lfi48 


S  " 


1.74 


1849 


1850  1851 


3.18 


3.08 


.Average  force  at  all 
places 


3.33 

2.r-8 

3.29 
2.41 
2.13 

2.52 
2.88 
2.30 


3.28!, 
l.Go'. 


2.G3 


1.85  2.08 
2.40 
2.071.... 
2.1t);1.70 


1,5512.05 


2.18 


3.41  2.98  2.31 
3.40  3. 14. 3. 40 


1852  185311854 


S  "J  s  « 

4)    O  I   ^    O 


3.30 


1.80 


3.24'2.69 


1.48 
2.31 
2.18 


1.54 


2.00|1.80 
2.45  2. 10 
3.14 


3.54 
2.19 


2.41 


1.90|1.6G 
2.20  2.57 


2.37  2.55 


2.03 


I 


2.53  2.70:2.05  ... 


2.40 


2.15 


2. OS  2.29:2.15 
1.7212.11  2.32 


,1. 


1.99  2.55 
2.17  2.67 


1.4511.01 


2.74'2.31;2.55 


2.03 


2.32  2.3012.59 


2.07  2.30 
2.22,2.30 


o 


10 

7 


sa 

a  ® 

OS'S 


1.87 
2.07 


10  1I2.9C 


8 
6 
5 
5 

10 
5 
2 

10 


3.01 
l.DO 
;2.C3 

2.50 

2.20 

I 
2. 20 

2.48 

2.09 

2.42 


It  appears  that  the  mean  force  of  the  wind  at  Fort  Snelling  for 
tUo  whole  term  is  less  than  at  any  other  station,  and  twonty-five 
per  cent,  less  than  the  average  of  all  stations  for  the  whole  term, 
and  that  the  mean  force  in  any  year  is  below  the  average  at  all 
stations  for  the  year,  except  in  1851,  when  it  slightly  exceeds  the 


average. 


In  concluding  this  subject  I  will  state  that  the  extracts  comprised 
in  the  foregoing  tables  have  been  made  at  raiulom,  so  far  as  the 
nature  of  each  case  would  permit,  and  with  the  sole  purpose  of 
arriving  at  the  trutii;  yet,  if  further  confirmatiijn  of  the  deductions 
drawn  from  them  is  desired,  it  may  be  found  in  the  fullest  measure 
within  the  volumes  (quoted. 


CLIMATOLOGY   OF  THE  NORTU-WEST. 


69 


APPENDIX  NO.  VI. 


CLIMATOLOGY  OF  THE  SASKATCHEWAN  DISTRICT  AND  OF  BRITISH  OREGON. 


[Extract  from  Blodgett'a  Climatology  of  the  United  States.] 
The  assei'tion  may  at  first  appear  unwarranted,  but  it  is  demon- 
strable that  an  area,  not  inferior  in  size  to  the  whole  United  States 
east  of  the  Mississippi,  now  almost  wholly  unoccupied,  lies  west 
of  the  98th  meridian  and  above  the  43d  parallel,  which  is  perfectly 
adapted  to  the  fullest  occupation  by  cultivated  nations.     *        * 

By  reference  to  the  illustration  of  the  distribution  of  heat,  we  sec 
that  the  cold  at  the  north  of  the  great  lakes  does  not  represent  the 
same  latitude  farther  west,  and  that  beyond  them  the  thermal  lines 
rise  as  high  in  latitude,  in  most  cases,  as  at  the  west  of  Europe. 
Central  Russia,  Germany,  the  Baltic  districts,  and  the  British  Is- 
lands, are  all  reproduced  in  the  general  structure,  though  the  ex- 
ceptions here  fall  against  the  advantage,  while  there  they  favor  it, 
through  the  immediate  influence  of  the  Gulf  Stream.         *  * 

Climate  is  indisputably  the  decisive  condition;  and  when  we  find 
the  isothermal  of  CO  dog.  for  the  summer  rising  on  the  interior 
American  plains  to  the  Gist  parallel,  or  fully  as  high  as  its  aver- 
age position  for  Europe,  it  is  impossible  to  doubt  the  existence  of 
favorable  climates  over  vast  areas  now  unoccupied.  This  favora- 
ble comparison  may  bo  traced  for  the  winter  also,  and,  in  the  aver- 
ages, for  che  year.  Tlie  exceptional  cold  of  the  mountain  plateaus, 
and  of  the  coast  below  43d  parallel,  masks  the  advantage  more  or 
less  to  those  who  approach  these  areas  from  the  western  part 
of  tiie  central  States  and  from  the  coast  of  California  ;  but, 
though  the  distinct  mountain  ranges  remain  high  at  the  north,  the 
■width  of  their  base,  or  of  the  plateau  from  which  they  rise,  is  much 
less  than  at  the  42d  parallel.  The  elevated  tracts  are  of  less  ex- 
tent, and  the  jjroportion  of  cultivable  surface  is  far  greater.       * 

It  is  decisive  of  the  general  question  of  sufficiency  of  rain,  to 
find  the  entire  surface  of  the  upper  plains  either  well  grassed  or 
well  wooded;  and  recent  information  on  these  points  almost  war- 
rants the  assertion  that  there  are  no  barren  tracts  of  consequence 
after  we  pass  the  Bad  Lands  and  the  Coleaus  of  the  Missouri.  Many 


i 


f 


m 


n 


'Mn 


n 


CLIMATOLOGY 


portions  of  these  plains  ?.ve  known  to  be  peculiarly  rich  in  grasses, 
and  probably  the  finest  tracts  lie  along  the  eastern  base  of  the 
mountains,  in  positions  corrv^sponding  to  the  mostdesert-likeof  the 
plains  at  the  south.  The  higher  latitudes  certainly  difler  widely 
from  the  plains  which  stretch  fvom  the  Platte  southward  to  the 
Llano  Estacado  of  Texas,  and  none  of  the  references  made  to  them 
by  residents  or  travellers  indicate  desert  characteristics.  Buffalo 
are  far  more  abundant  on  the  northern  plaips,  and  they  remain 
through  the  winter  at  their  extreme  border,  taking  shelter  in  the 
belts  of  woodland  on  the  Upper  Athabasca  and  Peace  rivers.  Gras- 
sy savannas  like  these  necessarily  imply  an  adequate  supply  of 
lain,  and  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  correspondence  with  the 
European  plains  in  like  geographical  position — those  of  Eastern 
Germany  and  Russia — is  quite  complete  in  this  respect.  If  a  dif- 
ference exist,  it  is  in  favor  of  the  American  plains,  which  have  a 
greater  proportion  of  surface  waters,  both  as  lakes  and  rivers. 

*  *  *  The  northwestern  coast  of  this  continent  is  even 
more  profusely  rainy  than  any  part  of  the  north-west  of  Europe  ; 
and  the  configuration  is  less  sharply  interrupted  along  the  coast 
north  of  Puget  Sound  than  it  is  south  of  that  line.  If  positive 
evidence  were  wanting  with  regard  to  any  part  of  the  interior 
plains  above  the  45th  parallel,  it  could  not  reasonably  be  inferred 
that  they  were  wanting  in  an  adequate  supply  of  atmospheric 
moisture. 

With  these  facts  of  climatological  capacity  established,  as  the 
whole  tenor  and  significance  of  American  research  on  tliis  point 
clearly  shows,  it  may  be  more  easy  to  understand  tiie  descriptions 
of  those  who  have  travelled  there,  and  to  connect  the  somewhat 
meagre  accounts  yet  written.  It  is  most  surprising  that  so  little 
is  known  of  the  great  Islands,  and  the  long  line  of  coast  from  Pu- 
get Sound  to  Sitka,  ample  as  its  resources  must  be,  even  for  re- 
cruiting the  transient  commerce  of  the  Pacific,  independent  of  its 
immense  intrinsic  value.  To  the  region  bordering  the  northern 
Pacific  the  finest  maritime  positions  belong  throughout  its  entire 
extent,  and  no  part  of  the  west  of  Europe  exceeds  it  in  the  advan- 
tages of  equable  climate,  fertile  soil  and  commercial  accessibility 
of  the  coast.  The  western  slope  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  system 
may  be  included  sis  a  part  of  this  maritime  region,  embracing  an 
immense  area  from  the  45th  to  the  GOth  parallel  and  five  degrees 
of  longitude  in  width.  The  cultivable  surface  of  this  district  can- 
not be  much  less  than  thr&^  hundred  thousand  square  miltt. 

Next  is  the  area  of  the  plains  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  not 
less  remarkable  than  the  first  for  the  absence  of  attention  hereto- 


OF  THE   NOKTII-WEST. 


n 


fore  given  to  its  intrinsic  value  as  a  productive  and  cultivable  re- 
gion within  easy  reach  of  emigration.  This  is  a  wedge-shaped 
tract,  ten  degrees  of  longitude  in  width  at  its  base  along  the  47th 
parallel,  inclined  northwestward  to  conform  to  the  trend  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  and  terminating  not  far  from  the  60th  parallel 
in  a  narrow  line,  which  still  extends  along  the  Mackenzie  for  three 
or  four  degrees  of  latitude  in  a  climate  barely  tolerable.  Lord  Sel- 
kirk begun  his  efforts  at  colonization  here  as  early  as  1805,  and, 
from  personal  knowledge,  he  then  claimed  lor  this  tract  a  capa- 
city to  support  thirty  millions  of  inhabitants.  All  the  grains  of 
the  cool  temperate  latitudes  are  produced  abundantly.  Indian 
corn  may  be  grown  on  both  branches  of  the  Saskatchewan  and  the 
grass  of  the  plains  is  singularly  abundant  and  rich.  Not  only  in 
the  earliest  period  of  exploration  of  these  plains,  but  now,  they  are 
the  great  resort  for  buffalo  herds,  which,  with  the  domestic  herds, 
and  horses  of  the  Indians  and  colonists,  remain  on  them  and  at 
their  woodland  borders  through  the  year.  The  simple  fact  of  the 
prese'ice  of  these  vast  herds  of  wild  cattle  on  the  plains  at  so  high 
a  latitude,  is  ample  proof  of  the  climatological  and  productive  cap- 
acity of  the  country.  Of  these  plains  and  their  woodland  borders 
the  valuable  surface  measures  fully  five  hundred  thousand  square 
miles. 

In  various  parts  of  the  present  work,  references  have  been 
made  to  the  leading  incidents  of  natural  capacity  and  of  actual 
growth  in  the  northwestern  districts.  It  is  not  necessary  to  re- 
peat them  here,  and  the  present  purpose  is  only  to  direct  attention 
to  the  development  in  that  quarter  as  one  offering  clearly  the  great- 
est field  in  which  natural  advantages  await  the  use  of  civilized 
nations.  The  reason  for  most  of  the  previous  and  present  neg- 
lect o'^  this  region  lies  in  mistaken  views  of  its  climate,  and  the 
peculiarities  of  much  of  the  Lake  Superior  district  are  such  as  to 
perpetuate  the  mistake.  With  the  unusual  severity  of  the  last 
two  or  three  winters  there,  it  appearb  incredible  that  the  country 
at  the  west,  rising  toward  the  Rocky  Mountains  should  be  less  se- 
vere. But  the  vast  plain  rises  very  little.  Fort  Union  is  but 
2,000  feet  above  the  sea,  and  Fort  Benton  but  2,600,  though  15 
deg.  of  longitude  due  west  of  the  plain  at  the  sources  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi at  1,500  feet.  Much  of  it  declines  in  altitude  northwest- 
ward, indeed,  toward  the  northern  lake-basins  and  Hudson's  Bay. 
The  increase  of  temperature  westward  is  quite  as  rapid  as  it  is 
southward  to  New  Mexico,  and  the  Pacific  borders  at  the  50th 
parallel  are  milder  in  winter  than  Santa  Fe.  In  every  condition 
forming  the  basis  of  national  wealth,  the  continental  mass  lying 


72 


CLIMATOLOGY   OF  THE  NORTH-WEST. 


westward  and  northwestward  from  Lake  Superior  is  far  more 
valuable  than  the  interior  in  lower  latitudes,  of  which  Salt  Lake 
and  Upper  New  Mexico  are  the  prominent  known  districts. 

The  history  of  this  northwestern  district  has  unusual  interest 
also,  though  the  details  are  meagre.  French  traders  ranged  the 
fertile  plains  of  Red  River  and  the  Saskatchewan  nearly  two  cen- 
turies since,  and  the  rich  trade  in  furs  and  peltries  has  for  so  ma- 
ny years  been  constantly  gathered  from  the  surrounding  tracts 
through  that  as  a  central  area.  This  occupation  was  coeval  with 
the  Spanish  occupation  of  New  Mexico  and  California,  and  but 
for  the  pernicious  views  entailed  by  the  fur  traffic,  as  to  the  neces- 
sity of  preserving  it  as  a  wilderness,  it  would  long  since  have 
been  open  to  colonization.  The  Hudson  Bay  and  Northwest 
Companies  had  a  gigantic  contest  for  possession  after  the  French 
had  given  way  to  British  dominion  in  Canada  ;  and  both  these 
Companies  at  last  concentrated  their  strength  in  efforts  to  preserve 
the  wilderness,  and  to  crush  the  infant  colony  of  Lord  Selkirk. 

The  whole  space  here  designated  the  North-west  is,  however 
the  joint  possession  of  tlic  United  States  and  Great  Britain — not 
only  in  territorial  title,  but  in  all  the  incidents  of  development. 
Its  commercial  and  industrial  capacity  is  gigantic,  and  one  which 
it  is  the  highest  interest  of  both  governiacnts  to  bring  out  at  the 
earliest  moment. 

The  illustration  of  tlio  summer  and  winter  climates  for  the 
country  north  of  the  50th  parallel  is  given — though  witii  less  ful. 
ness  than  could  be  desired,  on  the  isothermal  and  rain  charts — for 
the  temperate  latitudes  of  both  continents.  The  allusions'  here 
made  maybe  traced  there  in  a  general  way  ;  but  a  map  on  a  more 
ample  scale,  representing  the  now  unknown  plains  of  the  Yellow- 
stone and  the  southern  Saskatchewan,  and  the  equally  important 
Pacific  districts  north  of  A^'ancouver  Island,  and  witli  a  full  geo- 
graphical detail,  where  so  much  is  now  vaguely  placed,  is  much 
to  be  desired.  For  the  small  number  of  points  observed  above 
the  45th  parallel,  the  statistics  are  very  well  distributed  to  define 
the  climate.         *         *        * 

The  conditions  existing  in  tins  immense  area  deserve  a  distinct 
treatment,  and  particularly  the  importance  of  the  great  channel  of 
access  through  Lake  Superior  attaches  the  highest  interest  to  the 
definition  of  its  peculiar  climate.  Li  severe  winters  the  most  for- 
midable ice-barriers  are  interposed  over  a  portion  of  its  surface, 
as  the  ice  remains  late  and  in  large  fields  and  masses  at  the  east- 
ern end  of  Lake  Erie  in  the  same  cases — in  both  lakes  the  western 
and  larger  portions  being  free  from  obstructions  at  a  date  much 
earlier. 


SELKIRK    SETTLEMENT. 


73 


APPENDIX    NO.    VII. 


MEMOIR  OF  THE  SELKIRK    SETTLEMENT  UPON    THE  RED   RIVER   OF   THE    NORTH,, 
WITH    NOTICES  OF  THE   MANNERS  AND  LIFE  OF  THE  SETTLERS. 


IPrepared  by  J.  A.  Wueelock,  Esq.,  at  the  request  of  a  Public  Meeting  at  St.  Paul. 

held  July  17, 1858.]  ' 

Simultaneously  with  the  movement  in  this  city  and  in  different 
parts  of  the  State,  for  the  establishment  of  an  Emigrant  route 
through  Minnesota  and  the  British  Possessions  to  the  nevtr  field  of 
adventure  on  Frazer  River,  the  opportune  arrival  of  some  six  hun- 
dred carts  from  the  Red  River,  laden  with  the  furs  of  that  region, 
had  the  effect  of  directing  public  attention  more  immediately  to 
the  growing  importance  of  our  commercial  relations  with  these 
remarkable  settlements,  while  it  furnished  at  the  same  time  a  mul- 
titude of  witnesses  not  only  to  the  advantages  of  the  proposed 
route,  but  to  the  richniss  of  the  resources  which  such  a  route  would 
developc,  and  to  the  beauty  and  fertility  of  the  region  tributary  ta 
the  valley  of  the  Mississippi,  which  it  would  open  to  colonization. 

The  novel  appearance  of  the  visitors  themselves,  the  odd  uni- 
formity of  their  costume  of  coarse  blue  cloth,  with  its  barbaric  op- 
nlence  of  brass  buttons  and  fanciful  ostentation  of  red  belts  ;  the 
strange  mixture  of  complexions  which  they  presented,  all  the  way 
down  from  the  fair  skin,  and  light,  soft  curls  of  the  Celt  to  the 
dingy  color  and  straight  black  hair  of  the  Indian,  with  every  in- 
termediate shade  which  the  amalgamation  of  races  could  produce; 
their  language  as  various  as*  their  origin — a  curious  medley  of 
Chippewa,  Cree,  French,  English  and  Gaelic  ;  their  rude  wooden 
carts,  guiltless  of  iron,  even  to  the  venial  peccadillo  of  a  nail,, 
drawn  for  tiie  most  part  by  oxen  harnessed  singly  in  shafts,  with 
gearing  made  of  strips  of  raw  hide,  and  filing  in  long  procession 
through  the  streets  of  the  city,  with  the  disciplined  sequence  of  an 
Asiatic  caravan — it  is  not  surpriding  that  these  incidents  of  a  so- 
cial life,  removed  at  once  from  barbarism  and  civilization,  should 
have  excited  some  interest  in  the  history  of  a  people  who ,  with 
the  marks  of  a  European  extraction,  emerge  from  the  depths  of 
the  wilderness  with  the  characteristics  of  the  savage. 


I 


u 


MEMOIR   OF   THE 


If  -'' 


Nomadic  as  to  one  half  of  his  origin,  pastoral  and  agricultural 
as  to  the  other  ;  a  hunter  by  his  Indian  blood,  a  citizen  from  his 
European  instincts  ;  thrifty,  indolent,  staid,  mercurial,  as  father  or 
mother  predominates  in  his  nature — the  Red  River  half-breed  has  a 
story  as  curious  as  any  which  while  away  the  winter  nights  in  the 
chimney  corner  of  his  ancestral  Highland  home.  When  emigration 
had  scarcely  ventured  to  pass  the  AUeghanies,  a  colony  of  Scotch- 
men had  penetrated  beyond  the  waters  which  flow  into  Lake  Su- 
perior and  settled  at  tiie  mouth  of  the  Assineboin.  For  fifty  years 
since  then,  the  advancing  wave  of  American  colonization  has  roll- 
ed westward,  till  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  from  one  extreme 
to  the  other,  is  submerged  with  population  and  carved  into  wealthy 
States,  and  the  most  remote  of  the  inland  lakes  is  thronged  with 
Bieamboats  and  lined  with  embryo  cities  ;  and  yet  the  farthest 
point  which  the  American  pioneer  has  reached,  is  still  five  hundred 
onilbs  short  of  the  nearest  of  the  settlements,  which  for  half  a 
Jieutury  have  occupied  the  valley  of  the  Red  River.  This  strange 
isolation  of  a  European  people  in  the  profound  abysses  of  a  region 
almost  unknown  to  the  geographer,  surrounds  them  with  the 
charm  of  romance,  and  the  dramatic  situation  prepares  us  for  their 
strange,  eventful  history. 

Over  a  hundred  years  ago  French  adventurers,  eager  to  extend 
Ihe  area  of  their  fur  trade  and  the  limits  of  we  French  dominions, 
pushed  their  explorations  through  the  rivers  which  debouchc  on 
the  northern  shore  of  Lake  Superior  beyond  Lake  Winnipeg.  In 
au  old  map  reproduced  in  Mr.  Neill's  History  of  Minnesota,  and- 
dated  as  early  as  1762,  Fort  La  Reine  is  designated  at  the  conflu- 
ence of  the  Assineboin  and  Red  Rivers,  where  the  war eursdes  hois 
.from  the  French  establs'mient  at  Mackinac,  used  to  trade  with 
Ihe  Omahas  and  Assinneboins.  A  similar  trading  station  at  the 
same  period  existed  on  the  east  side  of  Lake  Winnipeg,  and  an- 
other on  the  Lake  of  the  Woods. 

Thomas  Ouuuy,  a  Canadian  trader,  who  ascended  the  Saskat- 
cl)ewan  in  17TG,  was  the  first  who  advanced  beyond  Lake  Win- 
nipeg, with  view  to  traffic.  The  profits  of  his  voyage  encour- 
aged others  to  follow  his  example.  Their  success  aroused  the 
jealousy  of  their  English  competitors,  who  had  established  a  traffic 
on  tlie  shores  of  Hudson's  Bay,  and  gave  rise  to  a  long  series  of 
disorders  and  excesses.  Joseph  Frohisher  and  his  brother,  who 
woDt  beyond  the  fifty-ninth  degree  of  latitude  to  Churchill  and 
Vik  la  Crosse,  and  Peter  Pond,  who  in  1778  entered  English  River 
and  the  river  L'Orignal,  where  he  passed  the  winter — are  the  prin- 
cipal names  associated  with  the  earlier  explorations  of  this  country. 


SELKIRK    SETfLEMENT. 


75 


In  1781,  four  canoes  filled  with  traders  ascended  the  Sa&katchewan 
to  the  highlands  which  divide  its  sources  from  the  valley  of  the 
McKcnzie.  In  1783,  the  Northwestern  Company,  principally  com- 
posed of  the  persons  already  mentioned,  was  organized,  and  waged 
a  bitter  competition  with  numerous  rivals.  In  1787,  the  several 
Fur  Companies,  who  had  been  contending  for  the  exclusive  trade  of 
the  Indians  of  the  northwest,  consolidated  under  the  name  of  the 
Northwest  Company,  which  then  had  only  one  remaining  rival  in 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company. 

The  latter  corporation,  whose  charter  dated  back  to  the  reign  of 
Charlbs  II,  in  1670,  had  not  yet  extended  their  establishments  into 
this  region,  and  the  Northwest  Company  enjoyed  an  undisturbed 
monopoly  of  the  lucrative  trade,  which  the  French  had  resigned  into 
their  hands.  Their  dream  of  exclusive  dominion  was,  however,  soon 
ended. 

In  1805,  Lord  Selkirk,  a  benevolent  but  impracticable  Scotch- 
man, and  a  member  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  who  had  pene- 
trated into  this  region,  was  so  struck  with  its  beauty  and  fertility, 
and  the  mildness  of  its  climate,  that  he  conceived  the  project  of 
planting  colonies  here  whose  growth  should  compensate  the  Brit* 
ish  crown  for  the  recent  loss  of  the  United  Colonies,  and  he  wrote 
several  tracts,  urging  the  superiority  of  this  region  for  the  British 
emigrant,  over  any  portion  of  the  United  States.  In  1811,  he  suc- 
ceeded in  obtaining  for  colonization,  a  grant  of  land  on  the  Red 
River,  from  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  which  was  at  the  same 
time,  aroused  by  his  representations,  to  the  necessity  of  extending 
their  jurisdiction  over  a  country  so  rich  in  furs  and  of  securing  its 
trade  to  themselves. 

In  the  Autumn  of  the  following  year,  a  small  detachment  of  em- 
igrants, whom  Lord  Selkirk  had  collected  from  the  highlands  of 
Scotland,  after  a  lung  and  toilsome  journey — whicli  must  have  been 
terrible  in  the  vast  solitudes  through  which  it  led  them  and  to 
which  it  led — arrived  on  the  banks  of  the  Red  River,  near  its  con- 
iluence  with  the  Assineboin.  There  they  commenced  building  houses, 
when  their  work  was  stopped  by  a  party  of  men  in  the  service  of  the 
North-West  Company — who,  disguised  in  Indian  costume,  ordered 
them  to  desist.  Frightened  by  their  menaces,  they  were  induced 
to  take  refuge  at  Pembina.  Their  guides,  as  savage  in  disposi- 
tion as  in  their  assumed  dress,  tyrannized  without  mercy  over  the 
affrighted  colonists,  robbing  them  of  whatever  they  most  prized, 
and  found  a  cruel  sport  in  the  alarm  they  caused  the  mothers  by 
pretending  to  run  off  with  their  children.  Several  of  the  more  deli- 
cate died  under  the  shock  of  this  inhuman  tretment.    The  winter 


76 


MEMOTB   OF   THE 


having  been  passed  in  tents  at  Pembina,  they  were  permitted  to 
return  to  their  settlements  in  tlie  Spring.  Their  labors  were  about 
to  be  rewarded  with  an  abundant  harvest,  when  it  was  destroyed 
by  birds.  The  next  winter  was  again  passed  at  Tembina,  and 
when  they  returned  to  their  settlements  in  the  Spri ug,  they  were 
in  a  condition  of  abject  poverty. 

"By  the  month  of  September,  1815,"  says  Mr.  Neiix,  "the 
number  of  settlers  was  about  two  hundred,  and  the  colony 
was  called  Kildonan,  after  the  old  parish  in  Scotland,  in  which 
many  were  born.  With  increased  numbers,  all  seemed  auspicious. 
Houses  were  built,  a  mill  erected,  and  imported  cattle  and  sheep 
began  to  graze  on  the  undulating  plains." 

But  avarice  and  jealousy  followed  them  even  to  these  solitudes. 
The  Northwest  Company  never  looked  with  favor  on  the  growth 
of  tlie  settlement,  which  was  regarded  as  a  scheme  of  their  rivals 
of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  to  dispossess  them  of  the  lucrative 
posts  which  they  occupied  in  the  neighborhood ;  and  in  the  summer 
of  1814,  Dnncan  Cameron  and  Alex.  McUonuel  were  appointed  at 
a  meeting  of  the  partners  of  the  Company  to  concert  racasurea  to 
stop  the  progress  of  tlio  colony.  In  pursuance  of  this  design, 
Cameron,  who  spoke  Crii'lic  with  Jluency,  aii''  ly  insinuated  liim- 
self  into  tlie  confidence  of  the  Higlilanders,  ana  without  evincing 
direct  hostility  to  the  plans  of  Selkirk,  gradually  sowed  the  seeds 
of  disaflbction  in  the  scttleiuont,  whit-li,  in  the  Spring  of  1815,  cul- 
minated in  the  desertion  of  a  number  of  the  colonists  to  the  quar- 
ters of  the  Northwestern  Company,  whose  employees  in  the  mean- 
while had  broken  open  the  storehouse  of  the  colony  and  carried 
away  their  field  pieces.  Endeavors  were  also  made  with  partial 
success  to  excite  the  minds  of  the  Indians  against  tlie  settlers. 

A  murderous  attack  was  made  by  the  Northwest  party  on  the 
Governor's  house,  who  was  seized  and  carried  off  to  Montreal  by 
Cameron.  McDonnel  followed  up  this  outrage  with  a  series  of 
aggressions  on  the  settlers.  Persecuted  to  extremity,  they  were 
again  foi'ced  to  abandon  their  homes.  About  this  time,  says  Mr. 
Neill,  toward  the  latter  part  of  the  pleasant  month  of  June,  two 
Ojibwa  Chiefs  arrived  with  forty  braves,  and  offered  to  'escort  the 
persecuted  settlers  with  their  property  to  Lake  Winnipeg.  Guard- 
ed by  the  grim  children  of  the  forest  from  the  assaults  of  their 
foes,  they,  like  the  Acadian  peasants  in  "  Evangeline,"  were 
"friendless,  homeless,  hopeless.''  The  mournful  picture  of  the  Aca- 
dian expatriation  was  mournfully  fulfilled,  even  in  the  sad  sight  of 
their  dwellings  wrapped  in  the  ilames  which  the  incendiary's  torch 
had  lighted. 


■gp^ 


SELKIRK     SEri'LKMKNT. 


77 


In  the  following  Spring  the  fugitives  returned  to  their  colony, 
under  tiie  protection  of  an  officer  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company, 
w!»o  arrested  Cameron  and  sent  him  to  England  for  trial. 

In  the  meantii'ne,  tiie  Earl  of  Selkiuk,  learning  of  the  distresses 
of  the  colonists,  sailed  for  America.  Ho  arrived  at  New  York  in  the 
fall  of  1815,  where  rumors  of  their  defection  reached  iiim,  and  in 
the  following  spring  he  set  out  for  the  colony  with  a  military  es- 
cort, which  he  had  organized  from  some  disbanded  military  com- 
panies. At  Sault  St.  Marie,  tidings  of  new  disasters  reached  him, 
Skmi'lk,  the  Governor  of  the  territory  of  the  Hudson  IJiiy  Company, 
who  had  but  just  taken  j'ossession  of  his  now  quarters  on  lied 
River,  was  attackiul  by  a  i)arty  of  the  employees  of  the  North- 
western Comi)any,  and  killed  with  a  number  of  his  men,  in  tlie  af- 
fray. Tiie  settlers  were  again  expelled  from  their  homes  by  the 
victorious  marauders,  and  were  already  on  tiieir  way  to  the  sea 
coast,  when  they  were  recalled  by  the  welcome  news  of  Selkiuk's 
ap[)roaeh.  A  reinforcement  of  emigrants  sent  to  the  colony  under 
his  directinii,  had  preceded  him.  Incensed  at  the  atrijcities  which 
had  been  perpetrated  by  the  agents  of  the  North-western  Com- 
pany, he  had  proceeded  with  his  force  to  the  head  (juarters  of  that 
Com[)any,  at  Fort  William,  on  T.ake  Superior,  and  having  appre- 
hended the  princii)al  parties,  sent  them  to  Montreal  for  trial. 

His  arrival  at  lied  Kiver  soon  retrieved  the  allairs  of  the  colony, 
and  he  left  it  the  following  year  in  a  nourishing  condition. 

Owing,  however,  to  the  scarcity  of  seed,  which  was  the  natural 
consequence  of  the  difficulties  already  stated.,  the  harvest  of  1817, 
though  the  yield  was  prolific,  was  insufficient  to  supply  the  wants 
of  the  increasing  population,  and  hunting  was  again  resorted  to 
for  subsistence.  They  set  out  in  December  across  the  plains  to 
join  a  distant  camp  of  Pembina  half-breed  hunters,  and  Indians. 
They  reached  it  after  a  journey  of  terrible  suffering,  to  find  the 
Buffalo  scarce  and  the  camp  sulisisting  upon  scanty  fair.  Spring 
renewed  their  hopes.  The  summer  was  propitious,  The  harvest 
was  already  ripe  for  the  sickle,  when  a  new  and  terrible  calamity 
befell  them. 

It  was  at  this  epoch,  in  the  summer  of  1818,  that  tlie  grasshop- 
pers, which  for  the  past  and  present  years  have  again  deva.stated 
those  settlements  ajid  extended  their  depredations  over  a  consider- 
able part  of  Minnesota,  made  their  first  recorded  appearance  in 
that  region.  The  vast  armies  of  tiiese  insects  darkened  the  air, 
and  passed  over  the  land  like  a  consuming  fire,  licking  up  every 
green  thing.    The  next  year,  (1819)  the  havoc  was  even  worse. 

" They  were  produced, "  says  Ross,    "in  masses,  two,  three  or 


78 


MEMOIR   OF   THE 


'I 


'i    I 


m 


N'' 


iM 


four  inches  in  depth.  The  water  was  infected  with  them.  Along 
the  river  they  were  to  be  found  in  heaps  like  seaweed  and  might 
be  sliovelled  with  a  spado.  Every  vegetable  substance  was  either 
eaten  up  or  stripped  to  the  bare  stalk.  The  bark  of  trees  shared 
the  same  fate.  Even  lires,  if  kindled  out  of  doors,  were  immedia- 
tely extinguished  by  them. " 

The  hunter's  life  alone  seemed  left  to  the  despairing  colonists, 
but  one  more  effort  was  made  to  retrieve  their  condition.  During 
the  winter  of  1819-20,  a  deputation  of  settlers  traveled  a  thousand 
miles  on  snow-shoes  across  Minnesota  to  Prairie  du  Chien,  for 
seed.  The  details  of  the  return  trip  in  the  Spring  of  1820,  are 
highly  interesting.  Three  Mackinac  boats  laden  with  wheat,  oats, 
and  peas  started  on  the  15th  of  April  from  Prairie  du  Chien  for  the 
Selkirk  settlements  on  Rod  River.  "  On  the  third  day  of  May  the 
boats  passed  through  Lake  Pepin.  The  voyage  was  continued  up 
the  Minnesota  River  to  Big  Stone  Lake,  from  which  a  portage  was 
made  into  Lac  Traverse,  a  mile  and  a  half  distant,  the  boats  being 
moved  across  on  rollers."  On  the  third  day  of  June  the  party  ar- 
rived at  Pembina,  where  on  opposite  sides  of  the  stream  of  that 
name,  the  Hudson  Bay  and  North-west  Companies  had  rival  tra- 
ding posts,  which  still  exist.  This  eventful  voyage  is  one  of  the 
most  striking  incidents  in  the  chronicles  of  the  settlement,  and  as 
remarked  by  Gov,  Sihi.ev  in  an  address  delivered  by  him,  "  is  worthy 
of  note,  as  it  is  the  only  instance  of  heavy  articles  being  transported 
the  entire  distance  from  Prairie  du  Chien  to  tlie  Red  River  by  water, 
with  the  exception  of  the  narrow  portage  between  Big  Stone  Lake 
and  Lake  Traverse. " 

The  next  two  years  of  continued  prosperity  repaired  the  disas- 
ters which  had  heretofore  assailed  the  colony.  In  1821,  the  two 
great  rival  Trading  Companies,  tired  of  useless  bloodshed  and  ex- 
pensive strife,  consolidated  under  tlic  name  of  the  Hudson  Bay 
Company,  and  their  union  seemed  to  secure  the  future  peace  and 
safety  of  the  settlement. 

In  the  same  year,  a  number  of  Swiss  arrived  in  the  colony, 
Clockmakers  in  profession,  the  new  pursuits  to  which  they  were 
called  were  not  congenial  to  them.  Like  the  Swiss  soldiers  of 
Napoleox,  they  grew  homesick,  and  pined  for  their  native  mountain 
homes. 

The  settlement  was  not  done  with  calamity.  Misfortune,  which 
had  pursued  it  in  every  form,  in  each  successive  visit  took  shapes 
more  appalling  than  the  last.  The  winter  and  spring  of  1825-6 
brought  a  fresh  train  of  disasters.  In  the  month  of  December  a 
furious  storm  overtook  a  large  party  of  buffalo  hunters  in  the  north- 


RKLKIRK    SRTTLEMENT. 


TO 


iisas- 
two 

d  ex- 
Bay 
and 


crn  plains  of  Minnesota,  and  drove  the  buft'ulo  out  of  their  rcack 
Relying  solely  on  the  flesh  of  this  animal  for  subsistence,  cut  olF  by 
the  wide  waste  of  deep  snows  from  the  nearest  settlement  at  Pem- 
bina, nearly  200  miles  distant,  they  had  no  resource  in  this  emer- 
gency. Starvation  stared  them  in  tl;'^  face.  Fuel  was  as  inacces- 
sible as  food.  Imprisoned  in  the  deer  snows,  overwhelmed  with 
cold  and  hunger,  numbers  perished  in  the  camp,  or  in  a  vain  attempt 
to  reach  Pembina,  before  rumors  of  their  situation  reached  th  e 
colony. 

The  calamities  of  the  settlers  reached  their  climax  in  the  ensuing 
spring,  when  the  molting  snows  poured  their  torrents  into  the 
streams.  The  year  1826  is  memorable  in  their  calendar,  ac  tlu;  yeai 
of  the  flood.  On  the  2d  of  May  the  lied  River  rose  nine  feet  In  tweu» 
ty-four  hours,  and  by  the  5th  the  level  plains  were  submerge  d.  The 
waters  continued  to  rise  till  the  21st,  when  houses  and  baihs  wove 
swept  ofl'  in  the  deluge.  The  settlers  fled  to  the  distant  hills^ 
whence  the  waters  swept  over  the  wide  plains  as  far  as  the  oye 
could *see.  The  flood  abated  in  June,  "and  such,"  says  Mr.  Neiil, 
"  is  the  surprising  quickness  with  which  vegetation  matures  five 
degrees  of  latitude  north  of  St.  Paul,  that  wheat  planted  on  th«," 
22d  of  June  came  to  maturity." 

The  discontented  Swiss,  driven  from  their  homes  by  the  flood, 
did  not  return  to  the  settlement,  but  departed  for  the  United  States 
and  settled  at  diflerent  points  on  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi.  \i 
is  a  curious  historical  fact,  that  the  first  emigrants  to  Minnesota, 
were  the  Swiss  refugees  from  Red  River  in  1826,  who  opened  farms 
on  the  present  site  of  St.  Paul,  and  near  Fort  Snelling ;  and,  according 
to  our  historian,  should  be  recognized  as  the  first  actual  settlers  oi 
the  State. 

Since  this  destructive  inundation,  no  e\ent  has  occurred  in  the 
history  of  the  settlement  to  interrupt  the  calm  course  of  its  pros... 
perity,  until  the  year  1852  brought  another  recurrence  of  the  deluge 
which  had  swept  over  the  plains  twenty-six  years  before.  The 
waters  in  tha*  year  rose  a  foot  higher  than  in  1 826.  In  conse- 
(juence  of  the  exposure  of  the  settlement  at  Pembina  to  these  ruin- 
ous casualties,  a  new  site  was  selected  for  the  Catholic  Mission  at 
that  place  near  Mount  Pembina,  forty  miles  distant,  at  a  place 
called  St.  Joseph. 

And  during  the  last  two  or  three  years  the  Red  River  valley  kas 
been  re-visited  by  the  mysterious  army  of  grasshoppers,  whose 
advance  guard  paused  last  year,  in  their  blasting  flight,  in  tUc 
northwestern  counties  of  Minnesota. 

A  visit  of  Col.  Sumner,  of  the  U.  S.  A.,  to  Pembina  in  1844  to 


w 


MEMOIR  OF  THE 


t; 


stop  the  encroachments  of  the  British  Half  Breeds  on  the  Buffalo 
rang-es  of  Minnesota,  and  of  Gov.  Kamsey,  in  1851,  to  make  a  treaty 
with  the  Upper  Chippewas;  an  occasional  battle  with  the  Yankton 
Sioux;  the  arrival  of  a  new  missionary,  or  the  visit  of  an  explorer; 
the  success  or  failure  of  a  soason's  hunt,  and  the  yearly  expedi- 
tions from  the  settlement  to  the  new  cities  which  have  arisen  dur- 
ing the  last  ten  jcars  on  the  head  waters  of  the  Mississippi;  the 
excitement  of  their  return,  freig-hted  with  curious  wares  to  gratify 
tiie  fancy  of  the  delig'lited  wom(;n  and  children,  arc  all  the  incidents 
wiiich  have  occurred  in  the  interval  to  vary  the  quiet  uniformity 
of  tlieir  lives,  until  the  prospect  of  emancipation  from  the  control  of 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  g'avc  a  new  impetus  and  an  intelligent 
direction  to  the  discontents  wliich  have  been  long  brewing  in  the 
colony. 

Imprisoned  in  the  deptlis  of  the  vast  solitudes  Aviiicli  surround 
them,  cut  olV  for  half  a  cciitur}'  irom  hunmu  sympathy  by  the  uni- 
versal ign(^rance  of  their  situation,  they  suddenly  liud  tliemselves 
the  object  of  the  toncern  of  the  civilized  world,  and  all  eyes  fixed 
upon  the  isolated  spot  they  occupy  as  the  theatre  of  tho  most  stu" 
pendens  enterprizo  of  the  age,  and  destiiu^d  in  its  realization  to 
change  the  face  x)f  the  continent.        * 

ClIARACTEmSTICS    01-'    THE    rOl'ULATION. 


h<t 


I 


The  Gens  Librks.— Ijong  before  the  Scotcli  settlement  was 
formed  at  tlie  moutii  of  the  A,;sineboin,  the  traillc  in  furs  had  at- 
tracted a  class  of  roving  adventurers  from  Canada,  attached  to 
the  numerous  trading  posts  wliicli  the  ^'rencli,  and  after  them  the 
North- weft  C'()mi)any,  had  established  throughout  this  regi(jn. 
Fa.scina.ed  with  the  wild  romantic  lilo  of  tlie  o/nrcur  ikr.  hois — 
severed  from  a  society  which  no  longer  liad  any  charms  for  theiu, 
their  restless  temi)eraments  found  a  congenial  employment  in  the 
pursuit  of  this  adventurous  and  erratic  life,  while  the  pleasures 
of  the  song  and  dance  and  i)ipe,  and  the  caress  of  an  Indian  maid 
compensated  them  for  all  their  toils  and  dangers. 

The  formation  of  a  permant  settlement  by  the  Scotch  colonists', 
with  the  nucleus  of  a  civilization,  had  the  effect  of  giving  an  or- 
ganized social  state  to  the  <{ens  /ibrrs,  as  they  called  themselves, 
and  their  half-breed  children.  The  establishment  of  missions  re- 
called them  to  some  of  the  duties  of  civilized  life,  and  they  have 
become  gradually  incorporated  without  becoming  assimilated  witii 
the  settlement. 

EvuMERATioN  A\D  SociAL  DIVISION'.— Tlic  populatioii  of  thc  Red 
River  Valley,  of  white  and  mixed  blood,  which  in  1812,  amounted 


* 


:  1 


SELKIRK  BBTTLBMEliT. 


81 


flhafto,  in  which  a  tingle  ox,  harnetsed  in  gearing  made  of  atrip* 
of  raw  hide,  performs  the  labor  of  transportation.  The  wiTts  and 
children  of  the  hunters  accompany  them  in  these  expeditions,  to 
perform  the  menial  services  of  the  camp,  to  pitch  the  tent  and 
cook  the  evening  meal. 

Till  Departure  or  n:  r  Trains. — Over  a  thousand  carts  are  fre- 
quently assemble  for  the  journey.  And  as  they  emerge  from  the 
settlements,  mutely  following  each  other  in  single  file,  Mid  the 
vast  procession  winds  away  across  the  plains  and  over  the  distant 
hills,  and  slowly  sinks  with  the  setting  sun  into  the  vast  wilder- 
ness beyond,  the  intelligent  spectator  instinctively  recalls  the  car- 
avans  which  fill  with  pictures  of  romance  and  poetry  the  desert 
plains  of  Asia. 

The  Camp. — A  thorough  organization  ensures  the  order  of  the 
camp — which  is  divided  into  brigades  under  the  command  of  cap- 
tains elected  by  the  hunters,  while  a  chief  officer  controls  the 
wiiole  body.  Rules  are  adopted  by  the  captains  in  council  for  the 
government  of  the  camp,  which  arc  in  general  implicitly  obeyed. 
A  Hag  hoisted  in  the  morning  is  their  rei-«"  — and  when  lowered 
at  night  it  is  the  signal  for  a  halt.  The  formation  of  their  night 
cncampmentH  is  conducted  with  the  discipline  of  an  army  in  the 
presence  of  an  enemy,  and  their  prcparatious  indeed  look  to  the 
possibility  of  attack  from  the  savage  foes  who  often  hover  on  their 
trail.  "  The  carts  are  arranged  in  the  form  of  a  circle  witn  the 
shafts  projecting  outward  ;  the  tents  arc  pitched  at  one  end  and 
the  animals  tethered  at  the  Dtlier."  Sentinels  relieved  at  regular 
intervals  patrol  the  camp,  amd  not  unfrequcntly  the  cry  of  alarm 
startles  the  hunters  from  their  mid-night  slumbers  to  repel  the 
treacherous  attack  of  their  ?t»a)thy  Yankton  enemies. 

The  Sabbath  day  is  observed  by  abstinence  from  hunting.  Theft 
is  rigorously  punished. 

The  Hunt. — Regulating  their  journey  by  these  rules,  the  bufialo 
is  Hought  in  his  favorite  ranges  on  the  Shaycnno  or  the  more  dis- 
tant plains  of  the  Saskatchewan,  whore  thousands  arc  often  found 
in  a  single  herd.  Scouts  announce  their  presence ;  a  permanent 
encampment  is  formed.  Mounted  on  trained  horses,  the  hunters 
advance  in  a  regular  cavalcade  undoi  the  orders  of  their  leader, 
t:)wards  the  herd,  taking  advantage  of  ail  the  inequalities  of  the 
surfacu  to  conceal  their  approach.  The  cautious  advance  gives 
place  to  a  swift  gallop,  as  they  burst  in  among  the  frightened 
herd  and  pour  a  volley  into  their  Hanks.  The  flight  of  the  herd 
and  tho  hunter's  pursuit  is  a  scene  of  fierce  excitemjiit,  which  has 
no  parallel  except  upon  the  field  of  battle.    The  tramp  of  the  re* 


4 


\ 


^  * 


82 


MBCOIB  OF  THB 


J 


^ 


f 


treating  amy  of  buffaloeii  is  described  m  like  tht  shock  of  Mi 
earthquake.  Often  thousanda  of  theae  noble  animals  in  a  single 
day  will  bite  the  dast  nnder  the  practiced  aim  of  the  huatera.  As 
they  dash  forward  at  full  gallop  in  the  swift  pursuit,  their  mouths 
full  of  bullets  which  they  drop  from  their  teeth,  without  wadding, 
into  the  muBsIe  of  their  guns,  while  the  hasty  charge  is  beat  into 
the  barrel,  by  concussion  upon  the  pummel  of  the  saddle,  they  load 
and  fire  in  a  few  seconds,  never  stopping  for  an  instant  in  the 
headlong  race. 

The  carts  follow  the  hunters  to  bring  in  the  spoils.  A  busy 
scene  ensues ;  the  carcasses  are  stripped  of  their  skins,  the  tongues 
cut  out ;  such  of  the  meat  as  can  be  used  is  carried  into  camp  ;  a 
part  is  dried,  the  rest  is  converted  into  pemmican — a  preparation 
of  boiled  tallow,  mixed  with  shreds  of  meat,  and  poured  into  sacks 
of  raw  hide— and  when  the  skins  are  dressed  ani  the  torgues 
cured,  the  labors  of  the  expedition  are  ended  ; — and  the  hunters 
return  to  their  homes  to  subsist  till  the  Fall  hunt,  on  the  results  of 
their  adventure.  They  live  mostly  on  pemmican  and  buffalo  meats. 
The  former  is  the  tint  g%a  non  of  the  voyagcur,  and  sells  at  the 
settlements  for  four  cents  per  pound.  The  tongues  and  hides  are 
referred  for  barter.  A  dried  tongue  sells  usually  for  twenty*fiv«i 
oentf,  and  a  buffalo  skin  for  two  or  three  dollars. 

.  BISTORT  or  TBI  r;?t  TRADB  Or  THB  RSD   RIVER  VAf J.KT. 

For  two  hundred  years  the  traflSc  in  furs  with  the  Indian  triben 
\7ho  inhabit  the  basin  of  Lake  Winnipeg  has  been  prosecuted  on 
the  shores  of  Hudson's  Bay. 

Obliged  by  the  <*onditions  of  the  treaty  of  Utrecht  in  1714,  to 
surrender  the  traffic  on  these  shores  to  the  exclusive  possession  of 
the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  the  French  confined  thc>ir  attention  to  iho 
new  channel  of  trade  which  the  Great  [Lakes  opened  out  to  them, 
and  pushing  their  enterprises  through  the  streams  which  tovrfrom 
the  West  into  Lake  Superior,  emerged  upon  the  magnificent  plainn 
which  are  watered  by  the  affluents  of  Lake  Winnip«*g,  and  ot^- 
Ublished  trading  posts*on  the' Lake  of  the  Woods,  the  Assinebom. 
and  even  among  the  distant  ^tribes  who  inhabited  the  sources  of 
the  Saskatchewan.  In  11«8,  by  the  terms  of  the  treaty  of  \er 
■allies,  the  French  relinquished  their  North  American  posscssi'.t.H 
to  England,  and  three  years  afterward,  British  subjects  from  Cana 
ada  following  the  rout«>«  pr  «ued  by  the  old  French  traders,  began 
to  arail  thesMelves  of  the  profitable  traffic  which  the  French  had 
established,  i^  penetrating  as  far  westward  as  their  predecessorH, 
began  to  occapy  the  posts  whicli  the  latter  had  deserted  along  the 
great  river*  that  ioV^  into  Lake  Winnipeg.    They  even  stretched 


in 


K 


BELKIKK    8RTTI.KMKNT. 


83 


northward,  and  engaged  in  direct  competition  with  the  Hndtont 
Bay  Company  for  the  traffic  which  they  at  this  time  carried  on  alonp 
the  rivers  whtch  debouch  into  Hudson's  Bay.  These  adventures^ 
however,  were  individual  enterprises,  and  their  prosecution  ofteia 
brought  them  into  collision  with  the  servants  of  that  company. 
Uniting  against  their  common  '3ncmy,  the  principal  of  these  tra> 
(lers  formed,  in  1783,  a  powerful  organization  under  the  name  or 
the  Northwest  Company.  This  was  not  a  chartered  company,  bat- 
as  successors  to  Ibe  old  French  traders,  they  pursued  a  verylocra- 
tive  traffic  via  the  lakes,  penetrating  t)  re^^ions  which  the  Frenck 
had  not  reached,  even  to  the  shores  of  the  PaciOc.  Their  fleets  of 
canoes  laden  with  goods  fur  the  Indians  or  furs  for  Montreal,  trav- 
crsed  the  continent  in  every  direction  through  the  connected  chain 
of  rivers  and  lakes  from  Mon^-cal  to  Puget*s  Sound.  It  was  not 
till  Ibll  that  the  Uudson  Bay  Company,  at  the.  instigation  of  the 
Earl  of  Selkirk,  set  up  a  claim  of  exclusive  jurisdiction  under 
their  charter,  over  this  immense  region,  and  in  1812,  with  the  ar- 
rival of  the  first  instalment  of  Selkirk  colonists,  they  established  ». 
fort  and  factory  on  the  Rod  River.  The  savage  contest  followed 
with  the  Northwest  Company,  some  details  of  which  have  atroady^ 
been  given,  in  which  the  oohmy  was  ruinously  involved,  and  wfakdi^ 
after  years  of  murderous  strife,  t''mlnating  with  the  mutual  ei^ 
haustion  of  both  parties,  was  at  length  concluded  by  the  coalition 
of  the  rival  companies  in  1821.  Some  idea  of  the  extent  to  which 
the  energy  and  activity  of  private  enterprise  had  carried  the  for 
trade  in  tlio  region  west  of  Lako  Superior,  principally  along  Ai» 
valleys  of  the  Red  River  and  Saskatchewan,  may  be  obta  nedfron 
the  fact  that  in  1815  the  Northwest  Company  had  lixty  trading 
r>08ts  in  tliis  region. 

Thus  the  history  of  the  fur  trade  on"  the  Red  River  Valley  may 
be  divided  into  three  periods,  of  nearly  eqnal  duration:  the  period 
of  t'ae  French  occupancy,  from  1714  to  1763,  when  the  trade  of 
tV  is  region  had  its  outlet  through  Rainy  Lake  River  into  Lake  So- 
perior — the  period  of  over  fifty  years  following,  from  1766  tel821» 
when  the  trade  was  principally  in  the  handH  of  the  Northwest 
Company,  and  followed  the  old  water  courses  which  the  French 
had  pursued — and  the  remaining  period,  from  1821  to  the  present 
time,  during  which  it  has  been  nearly  monopolized  by  the  Hudson 
Ray  Company,  and  forced  by  them  through  the  difficult  channel  of 
of  Nels4in's  River,  which  connects  their  i.iterior  trade  with  their 
ancient  posts  on  the  whores  of  Hudson's  Bay. 

The  vast  country  watered  by  the  majestic  rivers  which  interlock 
In  Lake  Winnipeg,  extending  from  Hudson's  Bay  and  Lake  SapCk\ior 


T" 


' 


84 


MEMOIR  OF   THE 


to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  is  one  of  four  principal  diTisions  of  the 
Compan3''8  Tcri  itoriea,  and  such  is  the  withering  effects  of  commer- 
cial monopoly,  that  the  numerous  trading  posts  which  the  Company 
found  established  at  every  eligible  point  along  the  streams,  have 
dwindled  to  thirty-three  in  number. 

The  furs  collected  at  these  posts,  which  extend  westward,  from 
Red  River  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  from  two  or  three  hundred 
miles  apart  are  transmitted  in  barges  and  canoes  down  the  Saskat- 
chew^  and  other  streams,  to  Lake  Winnipeg,  whence  they  have 
three  different  outlets,  to  wit:  Through  Nelson's  River  to  Hudson'H 
Bay;  through  Hed  and  Rainy  Lake  Rivers  to  Lake  Superior;  and  lat- 
terly by  c  trts  overland,  from  the  Red  River  Settlement  to  St.  Paul. 
Tlie  expense  and  difficulty  of  travel  through  the  two  former  canoe 
routes,  interrupted  by  innumerable  portages  has  had  the  effect, 
during  the  last  decade,  to  turn  this  trade  in  the  direction  of  its 
geographical  affinities,  which  furnish  in  the  smooth  adjacent  plains 
of  the  Red  River  and  Mississippi,  its  easiest  and  cheapest  avcnucn 
to  market.  The  land  route  to  St.  Paul  has  increased  in  favor  Binco 
the  completion  of  Railroads  to  the  Mississippi,  has  brought  uh  into 
direct  communication  xrith  the  seaboard,  and  the  Hudson  Bay  Com. 
paoy  itself  ceasing  to  struggle  against  the  inevitable  tendency  of 
things,  has  itself  acknowledged  the  superiority  of  the  route  it  had 
ignored,  by  sending,  this  year,  over  sixty  packages  of  its  goods  by 
this  channel. 

The  adoption  of  this  new  avenue  marks  a  new  era  in  the  history 
of  the  trade,  and  it  will  be  interesting  to  inform  ourselves  of  the 
value  of  that  trade  which  is  shortly  to  be  emancipated  from  tho 
arbitrary  restraints  of  a  commercial  monopoly — to  follow  its  legit- 
imate impulses — and  then  to  show  by  statistics  the  progress  of  tlic 
commercial  intercourse  which  has  sprung  up  in  obedience  to  iis 
natural  tendencies — and  its  prospects  of  future  expansion  in  the 
development  of  the  varied  resources  of  the  immense  region  Mliich 
is  drained  by  this  cliannel. 

According  to  an  English  document  before  us,  the  gross  value  of 
the  furs  and  skins  exported  to  England  from  the  posscssioni;)  of  the 
Hudson  Bay  Company,  varies  from  $1,000,000  to  $2,600,000.  At 
the  half  yearly  sale  at  London,  in  April  of  last  year,  the  proceoiis 
were  $1,160,000. 

The  average  of  annual  exports  of  furs  &c.,  from  the  Company'^ 
possessions  will  be  about  $1,800,000 — about  five  times  the  value  ei 
the  imports  sent  in  exchange,  which  amount  to  about  three  luindrc  •! 
thousand  dollars  in  all.  The  proportion  of  these  imports  which  ^  • 
to  the  district  under  consideration,  will  afford  A  reliable  mensiin 


T 


SELKIRK     SFrrTLKMKNT. 


B  of  the 
'ommer- 
ompany 
M,  have 

rd,  from 
hundred 
i  Saskat- 
ey  have 
Sudflon'H 

and  lat- 
St.  Paul, 
ler  canoe 
10  effect, 
ion  of  its 
snt  plains 
t,  arcnucfl 
ivor  since 
ht  U8  into 
Bay  Com. 
ndency  of 
utc  it  had 

goods  by 

;he  history 
Vi  8  of  the 
I  from  the 
«r  it8  Icgit- 
■re88  of  the 
encc  to  iiH 
aion  in  tiie 
gion  wliich 

)88  value  of 
lions  of  the 
50,000.  At 
ic  prociietlfi 

Company's 
the  value  oi 
ree  liundrcl 
{a  which  U' 
)lc  mcasmv 


80 


of  the  value  of  the  exports  therefrom,  which  are  shojirn  to  be  ai 
five  to  one.  The-  imports  of  the  Company's  goods  into  the  Red 
River  Settlement  alone,  have  averaged  for  a  number  of  years  past 
about  $100,000  per  year.  It  is  fa:r  to  presume  that  at  least  an 
equal  amount  (a  very  low  estimate)  has  been  distributed  among 
the  numerous  posts  ahmg  the  Saskatchewan  and  its  tributaries. 
The  proportion,  then,  of  the  whole  export  of  furs  from  the  basin  of 
the  Winnipeg  may  be  saf^jly  estimated  at  more  than  one  half  of  the 
whole  trade  of  the  Company,  or  at  least  $1,000,000. 

Such  are  tho  proceeds  of  the  trade  in  its  present  restricted  state, 
and  in  one  class  of  commodities  alone.  What  will  it  be  when  left 
to  the  ^  free  course  of  commoccial  competition,  and  when  an  unre- 
stricted colonization  oi»en8  new  fields  of  industry,  and  -presses  all 
the  resources  of  this  new  North- Western  empire  into  the  stream  of 
reciprocal  intercourse,  whose  swelling  volume  is  already  wearing 
a  deep  track  between  Red  River  and  St.  Paul.' 

THK  Kill  TIUnK  OF  ST.  PAUL  WITH  THE  RED  RIVER  V.\U.EV. 

It  is  to  Norman  W.  Kittson,  E8(|.,  tho  present  Mayor  of  tlie  City 
of  St.  Paul,  that  we  are  indebted  for  the  tirst  establishment  of  a  reg- 
ular trade  between  tho  Red  River  Valley,  and  tho  navigable  watws 
of  the  Mississippi.  Mk.  Kittson  went  U)  Pembina  in  1843.  This 
advantageous  point,  at  tho  mouth  of  the  Pembina  River  and  imme- 
diately on  the  internal ional  boundary,  which  had  formerly  been 
occupied  by  the  old  North-West  Company  as  a  trading  post,  he 
found  deserted.  ''■ 

But  perceiving  tho  eligibility  of  this  situation  for  tapping  the 
rich  fur  trade  of  tho  Red  River  Valley,  with  an  entire  exemption 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  oppressive  monopoly  on  the  other  side 
of  the  line,  he  mado  arrangements  for  establishing  a  post  here  in 
connection  witli  tho  Outfit  of  the  American  Fur  Company  at  Men- 
dota,  at  the  junction  of  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota  rivers,  and 
in  tho  following  year,  1844,  arrived  at  Pembina  with  the  first 
American  outfit  ever  established  in  the  Red  River  Valley. 

The  first  recorded  journey  from  Red  River  to  tho  Mississippi  uc« 
dertaken  with  a  commercial  object,  was  in  1820,  when  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  Red  River  settlement  obliged  them  to  procure  supplies 
;f  seed  at  Prairie  du  Chien.  Tho  detaihi  of  the  voyage  homeward, 
accomplished  in  Ma';kinac  boats,  through  tho  Minnesota  and  Red 
Itu'crs,  all  tho  way  Ivy  water  except  the  narrow  jwrtago  it  a  mile 
and  a  half  between  Lake  Traverse  and  Big  Stone  Lake,  have  al- 
ready been  given.  And  tho  citizens  of  St.  Paul  are  familiar  with 
the  venerable  form  of  Petkr  Havdkn,  who  has  until  recen  ly  annq* 


f 


i  ' 


I    . 


86 


XKMOIR   OK  THE 


allj  visited  St.  Paul,  and  who  long  \  eforo  Mr.  Kittson  established 
his  post  at  Pembina,  was  in  the  habit  of  making  occasional  ezcur- 
sions  from  the  Selkirk  Settlement  to  Mendota,  with  droves  of  cattle 
and  cargoes  of  moccasins. 

In  connection  with  the  earlier  exploits  in  this  trade  may  be  men- 
tioned, also,  the  trip  made  by  Alexis  Baillt,  Esq.,  now  a  citneb  of 
Wabashaw,  in  company  with  Francois  Labothe,  now  a  resident  of 
Nicollet  connty.  Mr.  Bailly  took  a  herd  of  cattle  and  horses  to 
Red  River,  which  were  in  great  demand  at  the  colony  at  the  time, 
and  commanded  high  prices.  lie  had  several  escapes  from  Indian 
war  parties,  who  stole  all  the  horses.  Mr.  Baim.t  sold  milch  cows 
at  the  colony  for  f  100  and  $135  each,  and  other  cattle  in  propor- 
tion. • 

Bat  the  staple  of  the  country — fhrs — formed  no  part  of  these  er* 
ratio  ventures.     In  these  commodities,  the  Hudson  Bay  Company 
rigidly  preserved  their  monopoly,  the  least  infringement  of  which 
was  rigorously  punished.    But  from  tho  time  of  the  establishment  of 
Mr.  Kittson's  trading  post  in  1844,  on  the  very  edge  of  their  terri- 
tory, yet  sbitMed  from  their  animosity  by  tho  inviolability  of  Amer- 
ican toil  and  American  citizcnsliip,  they  were  compelled  to  witncHs 
a  constant  encroachment  on  their  monopoly,  without  the  possibility 
of  preventing  it.     The  British  half-breeds  roamed  unrestricted  over 
American  Territory,  gathering  thousands  of  robes  annually,  on  the 
Shayeune  and  the  Missouri,  to  enrich  the  Hudson  Bay  Company. 
International  justice  certainly  did  not  suffer,  although  the  Company 
might,  if  furs  procured  on  the  Saskatchewan  and  the  Assineboiii 
found  their  way  gradually  to  the  intrusive  American  post,  on  the 
frontier.    The  Company  did  what  they  could  to  break  up  the  new 
establishment    They  even  had  Mr.  KnT80N  at  one  time  arrested 
for  a  violation  of  thf  ir  charter,  but  discreetly  failed  to  bring  any 
suit  against  him,  wLiich  might  have  tested  its  validity. 

But  partly  in  consequence  of  the  repressive  measures  adopted  by 
them,  and  still  more  from  tho  natural  difficulty  of  attracting  trnde 
from  its  established  channels,  the  first  years  of  this  8inglo*handcd 
competition  with  a  corporation  which,  in  a  history  of  two  hundred 
years,  had  worsted  all  its  rivals,  gave  little  promise  of  the  succeso 
which  has  at  a  later  period  attended  its  prosecution. 

The  amount  of  capital  invested  in  tho  first  venture,  in  1844,  was 
only  about  $2000,  and  the  gross  proceeds  of  the  furs  collected  in 
return,  scarcely  exceeded  $1400.  The  next  two  years'  operations 
involved  a  similar  loss,  tlie  proceeds  of  furs  collected  in  1855  being 
only  some  $3000,  against  an  investment  in  merchandize,  &c.,  of 
$4000->and  of  furs  in  1846,  of  $5000,  against  a  capital  invested  of 


(' -i 


lished 
Bxcur- 
cattle 

emen- 
kEcm  of 
lent  of 
rges  tu 
3  time, 
Indian 

1    C0W8 

propor* 

• 

liese  er- 
impany 
f  which 
iment  of 
>ir  terri- 
>f  Amcr- 
witness 
ssibility 
ted  over 
J,  on  tlic 
ompany. 
Jompaiiy 
gineboin 
;,  on  the 
the  new 
arrested 
ing  any 

opted  by 

ng  trade 

O'handcd 

hundred 

)  BUCCeSM 

844,  was 
llectcd  in 
perationB 
J55  being 
«,  Ac,  of 
ivested  of 


$6000. 
turn  in 
the  art 
post  gi 
nombci 
from  tl 
to  iOTO 
'  is  possi 
years  1 
of$a4,( 

The 
special 
Forbes 
KriTSON 
up  his  I 
Parring 
district 

In  1^ 
amount 
fur  trad 

From 
ber  21, 
passed 
amount 
was  th( 
the  par 
furs — tl 
$100,001 
small  p 
from  thi 
five  han 
one-four 
returnee 
not  by  e 

From 
changes 
low  csti' 
Paul  frc 
was  at  I' 

These' 
a  valiial' 
which  ai 
of  his  fi>'' 


SKLKIRK     SI'.TTLEMENT. 


87 


>!'  the  vulue  of  the  exports  therefrom,  whicii  are  «ho-A^ii  to  be  as 
five  to  one.  The  imports  of  the  Company's  goods  into  the  Red 
tliver  Settlement  alone,  have  averag-ed  for  a  number  of  years  past 
ibout  $100,000  per  year.  It  is  fair  to  presume  that  at  least  an 
3(jual  amount  (a  very  low  estimate)  has  been  distributed  among 
the  numerous  posts  along*  the  Saskatchewan  and  its  tributaries. 
The  proportion,  then,  of  the  whole  export  of  furs  from  the  basin  of 
the  Winnipeg  may  be  safely  estimated  at  more  than  one  half  of  the 
whole  trade  of  the  Company,  or  at  least  $1,000,000. 

Such  are  tli?  proceeds  of  the  trade  in  its  present  restricted  state, 
and  in  one  class  of  commodities  alone.  What  will  it  be  when  left 
to  the  free  course  of  commercial  competition,  and  when  an  unre- 
stricted colonization  opens  now  fields  of  industry,  and  presses  all 
the  resources  of  this  now  Xorth-Western  empire  into  the  stream  of 
reciprocal  intercourse,  whose  swelling  volume  is  already  wearing 
a  deep  track  between  IJed  River  and  St.  Paul? 

THE  Frn  TRADK  OF  ST.  PAUL  WITH  THE  RED  RIVER  VAI.I.EY. 

It  is  to  NoRMAX  W.  Knrsny,  Esq.,  the  present  Mayor  of  the  City 
of  St.  Paul,  that  we  are  indebted  for  the  first  establishment  of  a  reg- 
ular trade  between  the  Red  River  Valley,  and  the  navigable  waters 
Df  the  Mississippi.  Mr.  Kittson'  went  to  Pembina  in  1843.  This 
idvantagcous  point,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Pembina  River  and  imme- 
iiately  on  the  international  boundary,'  which  had  formerly  been 
occupied  by  the  old  Xorth-West  Company  as  a  trading  post,  he 
found  deserted. 

But  perceiving  the  eligibility  of  this  situation  for  tapping  the 
rich  fur  trade  of  the  Red  River  Valley,  with  an  entire  exemption 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  oppressive  monopoly  on  the  other  side 
of  the  line,  ho  made  arrangements  for  establishing  a  post  here  in 
connection  with  the  Outfit  of  the  American  Fur  Company  at  Men- 
dota,  at  the  junction  of  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota  rivers,  and 
in  the  following  year,  1844,  arrived  at  Pembina  with  the  first 
American  outfit  ever  established  in  the  Red  River  Valley. 

The  first  recorded  journey  from  Rod  River  to  the  Mississippi  un- 
dertaken with  a  commercial  object,  was  in  1820,  when  the  exigen* 
cies  of  the  Red  River  settlement  obliged  them  to  procure  supplies 
of  seed  at  Prairie  du  Chien.  The  details  of  the  voyage  homeward, 
accomplished  in  Ma';kinac  boats,  through  the  Minnesota  and  Red 
Rivers,  all  the  way  by  water  except  the  narrow  portage  of  a  mile 
and  a  lialf  between  Lake  Traverse  and  Big  Stone  Lake,  have  al- 
ready been  given.  And  the  citizens  of  St.  Paul  are  familiar  with 
»the  venerable  forn)  of  Peter  IIayden,  who  has  until  recently  annu- 


I 

J 


96 


MKMOIR  OK  THE 


i  , 


a\\j  visited  St.  Paul,  and  who  long  \  eroro  Mr.  Kittsom  estabi 
hia  post  at  Pembina,  waa  in  the  habit  of  making  occaaiunal  c 
siona  from  the  Selkirk  Settlement  to  Mendota,  with  droves  of  i 
And  cargoes  of  moccasins. 

In  connection  with  the  earlier  exploits  in  this  trade  may  bf 
tioned,  also,  the  trip  made  by  Alexis  Baii.it,  Esq.,  now  a  citf 
Wabashaw,  in  company  with  Francois  Ladothb,  now  ft  residt 
Hicollet  county.  Mr.  Bailly  took  a  herd  of  cattle  and  hon 
Red  River,  which  were  in  great  demand  at  the  colony  at  tho 
and  commanded  high  prices.  He  had  several  escapes  from  1 
war  parties,  who  stole  all  the  horses.  Mr.  Baii.i.y  sold  milch 
at  the  colony  for  $100  and  $135  each,  and  other  cattle  in  p 
lion.  ' 

Bot  the  staple  of  the  country — tara — formed  no  part  of  th' 
ratio  ventures.     In  these  commodities,  tho  Hudson  Bay  Cot 
rigidly  preserved  their  monopoly,  the  least  infringement  of 
was  rigorously  punished.    But  from  tho  time  of  the  establishr 
Mr.  KrrrsoN's  tradisg  post  in  1844,  on  the  very  edge  of  thei 
tory,  yet  shMded  from  their  animosity  by  tho  inviolability  of 
ican  aoii  and  American  citizenship,  they  were  compelled  to  v 
a  constant  encroachment  on  their  monopoly,  without  the  posi 
of  preventing  it.    The  British  half-breeds  roamed  unrestricti 
American  Territory,  gathering  thousands  of  robes  annually, 
Shayeune  and  the  Missouri,  to  enrich  the  Hudson  Bay  Coi 
International  justice  ccrtainl}'  did  not  suflcr,  although  the  Co 
might,  if  furs  procured  on  the  Saskatchewan  and  the  Assi 
found  their  way  gradual!/  to  the  intrusive  American  post, 
frontier.    The  Company  did  what  thoy  could  to  break  up  t 
establishment.    They  even  had  Mr.  Ktrrsov  at  ono  time  a 
for  a  violation  of  their  charter,  but  discreetly  failed  to  brii 
suit  against  him,  which  might  Imvo  tested  its  validity. 

But  partly  in  consequence  of  the  repressive  measures  ado) 
them,  and  still  more  from  tho  natural  difficulty  of  attractin| 
from  its  established  channels,  the  first  years  of  this  single* 
competition  with  a  corporation  which,  in  a  history  of  two  b 
years,  had  worsted  all  its  rivals,  gave  little  promise  of  the  t 
which  has  at  a  later  period  attended  its  prosecution. 

The  amount  of  capital  invested  in  the  first  venture,  in  18> 
only  about  $2000,  and  the  gross  proceeds  of  the  furs  colU 
return,  scarcely  exceeded  $1400.  The  next  two  years'  op4 
involved  a  similar  loss,  the  proceeds  of  furs  collected  in  185[ 
only  some  $3000,  against  an  investment  in  merchandize, 
$4000— and  of  furs  in  1846,  of  $5000,  against  a  capital  invf 


M 

■u 

f 

M> 

'  I 
k 


ill 


J 
I   ; 

V       1 


i 


ffK 

Ion 

Ml 

'IV 


RKLKIRK     SIITTLF.MF-NT. 


87 


:i< 


.1; 


Ui 


it 


U 


•of  the  value  of  tlio  t^xports  thorcfrom,  wliicli  are  shown  to  bo  as 
five  to  one.  Tlic  imports  of  tlie  Company's  goods  into  the  Red 
River  Settlement  alone,  have  averag(?d  for  a  number  of  years  past 
about  $100,000  per  year.  It  is  fair  to  presume  that  at  least  an 
equal  amount  (a  very  low  estimate)  has  been  distributed  among 
the  numerous  posts  along  the  Saskatchewan  and  its  tributaries. 
Tiio  proportion,  then,  of  the  wliole  export  of  furs  from  the  basin  of 
the  \Vinnij)og  may  be  safely  estimated  at  more  than  one  half  of  the 
whole  trade  of  the  Company,  or  at  least  $1,000,000. 

Such  are  tho  proceeds  of  the  trade  in  its  present  restricted  state, 
and  in  one  class  of  commodities  alone.  What  will  it  be  when  left 
to  the  free  course  of  commci'cial  competition,  and  when  an  unre- 
stricted coloni/.ation  opens  new  fields  of  industry,  and  presses  all 
the  resources  of  this  new  North-Western  empire  into  the  stream  of 
reciprocal  intercourse,  whose  swelling  volume  is  already  wearing 
a  deep  track  between  Red  River  and  St.  Paul? 

TIIK  Kill  TIIADK  OF  SI'.  PAUL  Wini  THE  RED  RIVER  VAM.EV. 

It  is  to  NoRMAX  W,  Kiirsov,  Eiii\.,  the  present  Mayor  of  the  City 
of  St.  Paul,  that  we  are  indebted  for  the  first  establishment  of  a  reg- 
ular trade  between  the  Red  River  Valley,  and  the  navigable  waters 
of  the  Mississippi.  Mr.  Kittson  went  to  Pembina  in  1843.  This 
advantageous  point,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Pembina  River  and  imme- 
diately on  the  international  boundary,'  which  had  formerly  been 
occupied  by  the  old  Xorth-West  Company  as  a  trading  ])0st,  he 
found  deserted. 

But  perceiving  the  eligibility  of  this  situation  for  tapping  the 
rich  fur  trade  of  the  Red  River  Valley,  with  an  entire  exemption 
from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  oppressive  monopoly  on  the  other  side 
of  the  line,  he  made  arrangements  for  establishing  a  post  here  ia 
connection  with  the  Outfit  of  the  American  Fur  Company  at  Men- 
dota,  at  the  junction  of  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota  rivers,  and 
in  the  following  year,  1844,  arrived  at  Pembina  with  the  first 
American  outfit  over  established  in  the  Red  River  Valley. 

The  iirst  recorded  journey  from  Red  River  to  the  Mississippi  un- 
dertaken with  a  commercial  object,  was  in  1820,  when  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  Red  River  settlement  obliged  them  to  procure  supplies 
of  seed  at  Prairie  du  Chien.  The  details  of  the  voyage  homeward, 
accomplished  in  Ma';kinac  boats,  through  the  Minnesota  and  Red 
Rivers,  all  the  way  by  water  except  the  narrow  portage  of  a  mile 
and  a  half  between  Lake  Traverse  and  Big  Stone  Lake,  have  al- 
ready been  given.  And  the  citizens  of  St.  Paul  are  familiar  with 
.the  venerable  form  of  Peter  Uaydex,  who  has  until  recently  aunu- 


88 


MEMOIR   OF  "THE 


I 


ally  -visited  St.  Paul,  and  who  long  lerore  Mr.  Kittson  established 
his  post  at  Pembina,  was  in  the  habit  of  making  occasional  excur- 
sions  from  the  Selkirk  Settlement  to  Mendota,  with  droves  of  cattle 
and  cargoes  of  moccasins. 

In  connection  with  the  earlier  exploits  in  this  trade  may  be  men- 
tioned, also,  the  trip  made  by  Alexis  Bam.i-y,  Esq.,  now  a  citizen  of 
Wabashaw,  in  company  with  Francois  Lahothe,  now  a  resident  of 
Nicollet  county.  Mr.  Baili.y  took  a  herd  of  cattle  and  horses  to 
Red  River,  wliich  were  in  great  demand  at  the  colony  at  the  time, 
and  commanded  high  prices.  lie  had  several  escapes  from  Indian 
war  parties,  who  stole  all  the  horses.  Mr.  Baii.i.y  sold  milch  cows 
at  the  colony  for  $100  and  $135  each,  and  other  cattle  in  propor- 
tion. 

But  the  staple  of  tiie  country — furs — formed  no  part  of  these  er- 
ratic ventures.  In  tliese  commodities,  the  Hudson  Bay  Company 
rigidly  preserved  their  monopaly,  the  least  infringement  of  which 
was  rigorously  punished.  But  from  the  time  of  the  establishment  of 
Mr.  Kitt.son's  trading  post  in  1844,  on  the  very  edge  of  their  terri- 
tory, yet  shielded  from  their  animosity  by  the  inviolability  of  Amer- 
ican soil  and  American  citizenship,  they  were  compelled  to  witness 
a  constant  encroachment  on  their  monopoly,  without  the  possibility 
of  preventing  it.  The  British  half-breeds  roamed  unrestricted  over 
American  Territory,  gathering  thousands  of  robes  annually,  on  the 
Shayenne  and  the  Missouri,  to  enrich  the  Hudson  Bay  Company. 
International  justice  certainly  did  not  sutler,  although  the  Company 
might,  if  furs  procured  on  the  Saskatchewan  and  the  Assineboin 
found  their  way  gradually  to  the  iiitrusive  American  post,  on  the 
frontier.  The  Company  did  what  they  could  to  break  up  the  new 
establishment.  They  even  had  Mr,  Kiti'son  at  one  time  arrested 
for  a  violation  of  their  charter,  but  discreetly  failed  to  bring  any 
suit  against  him,  which  might  have  tested  its  validity. 

But  partly  in  conseciuence  of  the  repressive  measures  adopted  by 
them,  and  still  more  from  the  natural  difficulty  of  attracting  trade 
from  its  established  channels,  the  first  years  of  this  single  handed 
competition  witli  a  corporation  which,  in  a  history  of  two  hundred 
years,  had  worsted  all  its  rivals,  gave  little  promise  of  the  success 
which  has  at  a  later  period  attended  its  prosecution. 

The  amount  of  capital  invested  in  the  first  venture,  in  1844,  was 
only  about  $2000,  and  the  gross  proceeds  of  the  furs  collected  in 
return,  scarcely  exceeded  $1400.  The  next  two  years'  operations 
involved  a  similar  loss,  the  proceeds  of  furs  collected  in  1855  being' 
only  some  $3000,  against  an  investment  in  merchandize,  «&c.,  of 
$4000 — and  of  furs  in  1840,  of  $5000,  against  a  capital  invested  of 


SELKIRK     HE'JTLEMENT. 


8» 


atlishcd 
,1  excur- 
}f  cattle 

'  be  men- 
;itizen  of 
lidcnt  of 
orses  to 
lie  time, 
1  Indian 
ch  cows 
1  propor" 

these  er- 
^mpany 
of  which 
hment  of 
eir  terri- 
of  Amer- 
I  witness 
)8sibility 
;ted  over 
y,  on  the 
ompany. 
onipany 
isineboin 
t,  on  the 
the  new 
arrested 
•iuj^  any 

up  ted  by 

ag  trade 

e  handed 

hundred 

success 

844,  was 
lected  in 
)erations 
55  being 
3,  &c.,  of 
.'ested  of 


$6000.  From  this  time,  however,  the  stream  of  trade  began  to 
turn  in  the  direction  of  the  Mississippi  valley,  and  to  break  over 
the  artificial  barriers  interposed  by  the  Company.  Mr.  Kittson's 
post  grew  in  favor  with  the  half-breed  settlers,  who  deserted  in 
numbers  from  the  service  of  the  Company,  to  receive  their  supplies 
from  the  American  trader.  In  1850  the  trade  had  increased  so  as 
to  involve  a  consumption  of  goods  to  the  extent  of  $10,000,  and  it 
is  possible  that  the  proceeds  in  furs  were  at  least  $15,000.  Five 
years  later,  (in  1855,)  the  Pembina  outfit  engaged  an  expenditure 
of  $24,000,  with  a  return  in  furs  of  nearly  $40,000. 

The  importance  of  the  trade  at  this  time  seemed  to  demand  a 
special  depot  at  St.  Paul,  and  accordingly  in  this  year,  the  firm  of 
FouBES  &  Kiri'rfoN  was  organized,  principally  on  this  basis,  and  Mr. 
KiTTSp.v,  abandoning  the  subordinate  outfit  to  younger  traders,  took 
up  his  residence  in  this  city — and  the  enterprising  firm  of  Culver  & 
Farringtom  soon  after  established  an  agency  in  the  same  lucrative 
district. 

In  1856,  the  total  fiu's  received  at  St.  Paul  from  this  source* 
amounted  to  nearly  $75,000,  being  nearly  Ibur-fifths  of  the  whole 
fur  trade  of  St.  Paul. 

From  statistics  published  in  the  St.  Paul  Advertiser  of  Decem- 
ber 21,  1857,  we  learn  that  the  total  value  of  the  furs  which 
passed  through  St.  Paul  houses  that  year  for  exportation  below 
amounted  to  $180,000— of  which  at  least  two-thirds,  or  $120,000, 
was  the  product  oF  the  Ked  River  Valle}'.  This  year,  owing  to 
the  partial  failure  of  the  Buffalo — the  most  important  crop  of 
furs — the  receipts  are  lighter,  and  will  not  perhaps  exceed 
$100,000.  But  tlie  carts  which  are  laden  with  furs  form  but  a 
small  part  of  the  immense  caravans  which  now  annually  set  out 
from  the  Ked  River  Colony  to  St.  Paul.  The  loaded  carts,  of  the 
five  hundred  which  recently  arrived  at  St.  Paul,  did  not  exceed 
one-fourth  of  the  whole  number.  Tiie  rest  arrived  empty,  and 
returned  to  the  settlement  laden  with  merchandise,  purchased — 
not  by  exchanges  of  furs — but  by  direct  outlays  of  money. 

From  the  number  of  empty  carts  which  did  not  depend  upon  ex- 
changes of  furs  to  fill  them,  in  proportion  to  loaded  ones,  it  is  a 
low  estimate  to  presume  that  the  amount  of  money  brought  to  St. 
Paul  from  the  Selkirk  Settlement  by  the  arrivals  of  this  season 
was  at  least  equal  in  value  to  the  fur  product — or  about  $100,000. 

These  carts,  like  the  marine  tonnage  in  a  particular  trade,  afford 
a  valuable  measure  of  the  growth  of  the  trade.  In  1844  the  carts 
which  ac^ompo.nied  Mr.  Kittson  to  Mendota  to  convey  the  results 
of  his  firs:  Boajon's  business  at  Pembina,  were  only  six  in  number. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
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23  WEST  VAIN  STREET 

ViiBSTER.N.Y.  14580 

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90 


VISIT   TO   THK 


In  1858  the  aggregate  arrivals  are  currently  stated  at  six  hun- 
dred. Of  these,  it  is  interesting  o  note  that  over  four  hundred 
came  from  the  British  Territory.  The  owners  of  these,  instead  of 
furs  which  they  are  proiiibited  by  the  "  Company  "  from  exporting, 
except  through  their  hands,  bring  the  money  wliich  they  have  ob- 
tained in  exchange  for  their  peltries. 

Tiie  monopoly  in  the  course  of  the  last  five  years  has  hung  very 
loosely  round  the  shoulders  of  the  "Company."  The  competition  in 
the  fur  trade,  whicli,  before  that  was  put  down  by  the  most  rigor- 
ous measures,  now  proves  too  formidable  and  is  backed  by  too 
powerful  a  public  opinion  in  Canada  to  be  suppressed  by  the  usual 
policy  of  restriction. 

In  addition  to  the  American  posts  on  this  side  of  the  line,  there 
are  some  hundred  independent  traders  in  the  Territories  of  the  Com- 
pany itself,  of  whicli  there  are  at  least  seventy  in  Selkirk  Settle- 
ment alone.  Though  rigidly  prohibited  from  dealing  in  the  contra- 
band articles  of  furs  and  rum;  both  branches  of  trade  are  prosecu- 
ted to  considerable  extent  and  the  product  smuggled  across  the 
border. 

It  cannot  be  doubted  that  if  the  enormous  duty  of  12^  per  cent 
now  levied  on  importations  of  Britisli  furs  across  the  boundary 
were  abolished,  that  with  the  termination  of  the  sway  of  the  Hud- 
son Bay  Company,  the  whole  of  the  trade  now  forced  through  tiie 
difficult  ciiannel  of  Nelson's  River,  would  seek  its  more  natural 
and  congenial  outlet  in  this  direction. 


* 


rt 


APPENDIX    NO.    VIII 


A    Vr«IT    TO   THE    REn    RIVER   SETTLEMENTS. 


(.Extract  from  an  Addrosg  before  the  Minnesota  Agricultural  Societ}-,  delivered  by 
Hon.  Alexander  Ramsey,' first  Governor  of  the  Territory  of  Minnesota.] 

It  was  my  fortune  in  1851  to  be  commissioned  by  the  President 
of  the  United  States  to  negotiate  a  treaty  with  the  Chippewa  In- 
dians of  Pembina,  Red  Lake  and  Turtle  Mountain,  for  the  extin- 
guishment of  their  nominal  title  of  occupancy  (the  real  title  being 
in  the  Red  River  Half  Breeds  themselves)  to  the  valley  of  the  Red 
River  of  the  North. 


EKD    RIVER   SETTLEMKNT8. 


91 


After  closing-  oui-  council  with  thorn  aud  the  half  breeds  at  the 
point  of  confluence  of  the  Pembina  with  the  Red  River,  I  had  a 
few  days  leisure  while  preparations  were  bein,s,^  made  for  the  return 
of  our  own  party  southward,  and  I  concluded  to  visit  the  Selkirk 
Settlement,  some  eig-lity  miles  beyond  the  international  boundary 
line  and  about  one  hundred  miles  down  the  Red  River  of  the  North. 

Securing  two  birch  bark  canoes  of  the  largest  si;je,  and  employ- 
ing eight  voyageurs  or  paddlers,  in  each,  with  Dr.  Thomas  Foster, 
Lieut.  CoRLEv,  Hu(iH  Tyler,  Esq.,  and  Pierre  BorriEAr,  our  faithful 
guide,  in  company,  we  committed  ourselves  to  the  muddy  waters 
of  the  famed  Red  River  of  the  North,  aud  des<xndcd  northward  as 
rapidly  as  the  nervous  arms  of  our  sturdy  voyageurs  could  send 
us. 

Our  first  night  out  was  spent  in  our  tout  pitched  on  the  bank  of 
the  river;  but  the  next  day  about  noon  we  had  notice  that  we  were 
approaching  the  upper  portion  of  the  Selkirk  Settlement,  and  at 
about  2  o'clock  P.  M.,  the  first  house  broke  upon  our  view— farm 
houses  witli  gardens  attaclied,  and  fenced  fields  around  them,  each 
farm  with  its  proper  complement;  of  substantial  barns  and  out- 
houses, and  the  commo?i  assortment  of  poultry  industriously  pick- 
ing up  their  living  as  usual,  with  cattle  grazing  in  the  distance, 
and  men  moving  around  with  teams  at  their  work,  and  grain  stacks, 
hay  ricks,  aud  all  the  evidences  of  prosperous  farming,  filling  up 
the  cheerful  picture. 

To  na  it  was  a  cliecrful  one  indeed.  We  felt  as  the  marines  do 
^7hen  a  month  or  more  at  sea,  upon  catching  sight  of  land  again. 
Land  ho!  is  their  cry.  Farm  ho!  was  ours.  To  us  tliese  farms 
that  were  almost  within  shaking  hand  distance  of  the  North  Pole, 
gave  us  assurances  that  civilized  people  lived  there;  that  plenty 
reigned  there;  that  contort  was  about  the  hearthstone.  It  was  a 
pledge  also,  gentlemen,  of  a  good  dinner  in  store  for  us;  a  thing 
not  to  be  despised  by  such  wayfarers  as  we  'were  in  the  wilder- 
ness; but  a  thing  whicl'  I  assure  you  is  not  always  to  be  obtained 
when  meeting  with  those  generally  needy  and  scantily  provisioned 
people  of  the  wilderness  who  hove  no  farms !  Those  farmless  deni- 
zens of  the  wild  are  much  more  likely  to  want,  and  take,  too,  if 
they  can,  your  dinner,  if  you  have  one,  than  to  bestow  a  noon 
meal  upon  you — fov,  gentlemen,  believe  me,  that  out  there  in  the . 
wilderness,  they  still  cling  to 

"The  gooil  olil  rule,  tli(!  siinplo  i)l;in, 
That  they  shall  take  who  have  the  power, 
And  they  sliall  keep — who  can." 

But  a  farm  house,  on  the  contrary,  in  whatever  part  of  the  world 

you  may  drop  in  upon  it,  is  synonymous  with  the  horn  of  plenty; 


'  'J 


r 


92 


VISIT  TO  THE 


you  may  be  sure  there  are  good  things  inside  and  around  it,  and 
that  the  farmer's  heart  is  always  as  large  in  the  way  of  hospitality 
as  his  barn  is  big,  and  sometimes  a  little  larger.  On  this  pre- 
sumption we  forthwith  acted,  and  beaching  our  canoes,  soon  found 
our  anticipations  realized  by  partaking  -of  a  real  civilized  dinner 
once  more,  of  \vhich  the  usual  vegetables,  such  as  we  arc  familiar 
with,  formed  an  acceptable  part. 

Perhaps  you  wonaer  at  my  dwelling  on  this  circumstance  which 
possibly  has  but  little  interest  in  your  cars;  but  no  incident  of  my 
life  dwells  more  vividly  on  my  mind,  or  is  looked  back  upon  with 
more  pleasure,  than  this  meeti.vg  with  those  farm  houses  of  that 
far  northern  river;  a  feeling  akin  to  that  which  would  make  a 
parched  traveler  in  Sahara's  Desert  remember  forever  his  discovery 
of  a  spring  of  living  water  that  was  unknown  before  to  exist 
amidst  its  arid  sands. 

Re-erhbarking  in  our  canoes,  we  continued  descending  the  river 
for  some  fifteen  miles  further,  through  the  French  portion  of  the 
settlement  lining  mainly  the  west  or  left  bank  of  the  river,  until 
we  arrived  about  the  centre  of  the  colony,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Assiniboin  tributary  of  Red  River,  where  we  landed  and  remained 
a  few  days,  viewing  the  colony  and  its  improvements. 

I  was  at  that  tune,  and  am  even  r  ow  when  I  look  back  upon  it,  lost 
in  wonder  at  the  phenomena  whicli  that  settlement  exliibits  to  the 
world. 

Imagine  a  river  fiov.'ing  sluggishly  northward  through  a  flat 
alluvial  plain,  and  tlie  west  side  of  it  lined  continuously  for 
over  thirty  miles  with  cultivated  farms,  each  presenting  those  ap- 
pearances of  thrift  around  them  which  I  mentioned  as  surrounding 
the  first  farms  seen  by  us;  each  farm  with  a  narrow  frontage  on 
the  river  of  only  twenty-four  rods  in  width,  but  extending  back  for 
one  or  two  miles,  arul  each  of  these  narrow  farms  having  their 
dwellings  and  the  farm  out  buildings  spread  along  the  riverfront, 
with  lawns  sloping  to  the  waters' edge  and  shrubbery  and  vines  lib- 
erally trained  around  them,  and  trees  intermingled — the  whole  pre- 
senting the  appearance  of  a  long  suburban  village — such  as  you 
might  see  near  our  eastern  seaboard,  or  such  as  you  find  exhibited 
in  pictures  of  English  country  villages;  with  the  resemblance  ren- 
dered mere  striking  by  the  spires  of  several  large  churches  peeping 
above  the  foliage  of  the  trees  in  the  distance;  whitewashed  school- 
houses  glisten  here  and  there,  amidst  sunlight  and  green;  gentle- 
men's houses  of  pretentious  dimensions  and  grassy  lawns  and  elab- 
orate fencing,  the  seats  of  retired  officers  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Com- 
occasionallv  interspersed;  here  an  English  Bishop's  Parson- 


pany; 


3rspei 


d  it,  and 
spitality 
this  pre- 
on  found 
id  dinner 
familiar 

cc  which 
nt  of  my 
ion  with 
i  of  that 
make  a 
liacovery 
to   exist 

the  river 
)n  of  the 
i^er,  until 
h  of  the 
remained 

)n  it,  lost 
its  to  the 

h  a  flat 
)usly  for 
those  ap- 
ounding 
ago  on 
•ack  for 
ug  tlicir 
er  front, 
ncs  lib- 
;iole  pic- 
as you 
xhibitcd 
mce  ren- 
pecping- 
d  school- 
gentle- 
ind  elab- 
ay  Com- 
Paraon- 


REl)    RIVER    BETTLKMENTS. 


93 


age,  with  a  Boarding  or  High  School  near  by;  and  over  there  a 
Catholic  Bishop's  massive  Cathedral,  with  a  Convent  of  the  Sisters 
of  Charity  attached;  whilst  the  two  largo  stone  forts,  (at  which 
reside  the  officers  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  or  of  the  Colony, 
one  called  Upper  Fort  Garry,  and  situated  at  the  mouth  of  the  As- 
siniboin,  and  the  other  termed  Lower  Fort  Garry,  which  is  twenty 
miles  farther  down  the  river,)  helped  to  give  additional  pictur- 
esqueness  to  the  scene. 

I  had  almost  forgotten  to  mention,  what  is  after  all  the  most 
prominent  and  peculiar  feature  of  that  singular  landscape — singu- 
lar from  its  location — and  that  is,  tho  numerous  tcind  mills,  nearly 
twenty  in  all,  wiiich  on  every  point  of  land  made  by  the  turns  and 
bends  in  the  river,  stretched  out  their  huge  sails  athwart  the  hori- 
zon, and  seemingly  looked  defiance  at  us,  as  invading  strangers 
that  were  from  a  land  where  steam  or  water  mills  monopolize  their 
avocation  of  Hour  making. 

One  morning,  as  we  passed  down  the  j)rincipal  high  road,  on 
our  way  to  Lower  Fort  Garry,  the  wind  after  a  protracted  calm 
began  to  bio-  '  a  little  ;  when  presto  !  each  mill  veered  around  its 
sails  to  catch  the  propitious  breeze,  and  as  tho  sails  began  to  re- 
volve, it  was  curious  to  observe  tho  numerous  carts  that  shot  out 
from  nearly  every  farm-house,  and  hurried  along  the  road  to  these 
mills,  to  get  ground  their  grists  of  spring  wheat,  with  which  they 
were  respectively  loaded. 

Another  incident  during  the  same  trip  that  struck  us  oddly,  was 
seeing  two  ladies  driving  by  themselves  a  fine  horse  hitched  to  a 
buggy  of  modern  fashion,  just  as  much  at  home  apparently  as  if 
they  were  driving  through  the  streets  of  St.  Paul,  St.  Anthony  or 
Minneapolis,  instead  of  upon  that  remote  highway  towards  the 
North  Pole  ;  but  this  was  not  a  whit  more  novel  than  to  hear  the 
pianoforte,  and  played  too,  with  boLh  taste  and  skill.  AVhile  an- 
other "  lion"  oF  those  parts  that  met  our  view  was  a  topsail  schoon- 
er lying  in  the  river  at  the  Lower  Fort,  which  made  occasional 
trips  into  Great  Lake  Winnipeg  of  the  North,  a  hundred  miles 
below. 

I  took  occasion  during  my  visit  to  inquire  what  success  tho  far* 
mers  mot  with  in  securing  good  crops,  and  the  profits  of  farming 
generally. 

As  to  wheat,  I  learned  that  the  yield  of  the  spring  variety  was 
quite  equal  in  quantity  and  quality  to  tho  crop  of  that  grain  on 
any  more  southern  farms  ;  that  in  raising  barley  they  could  almost 
surpass  the  world  ;  and  that  the  cereals  generally,  and  all  the 
eculent  roots,  were  easily  raised.  Iudi\n  corn  was  not  planted 
as  a  field  crop,  though  it  was  grown  in  their  gardens. 


T^ 


f¥ 


VISIT   TO    TIIK 


In  a  word,  the  capacity  of  tlicir  land  to  produce  almost  ovory- 
thiiig  plentifully  and  well,  was  established  :  but  f(jr  all  this,  farm- 
ing did  not  afford  much  profit  for  want  of  a  sullicicnt  inark«t  ;  be- 
yond a  small  demand  Ity  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  there  was  no 
outlet  for  their  superabundance,  and  to  use  an  Austrian  phrase  in 
regard  to  the  Hungarians,  tlie  Sclkirkers  are  metaphorically 
"  smc>thcring  in  their  own  fat." 

To  remedy  tliis  State  of  things  th(,'y  were  beginning,  when  i  was 
there,  to  turn  their  attention  towards  raising  Cattle  and  Horses, 
for  wjiich  their  country  is  well  calculated,  and  the  first  fruits  of 
this  new  direction  given  to  their  farming  energies,  we  have  al- 
ready experienced,  in  the  droves  of  both  which  have  recently  been 
drivcTi  from  thence  and  sold  in  this  vicinity. 

The  Hudson  Bay  Company  have  taken  considerable  pains  to  aid 
in  this  stock  enterprise.  I  saw  at  Lower  Fort  Garry,  a  splendid 
bay  yfalUon  of  almost  gigantic  size,  and  of  the  finest  points,  which 
the  Company  had  imported  from  England  at  a  cost  of  two  thousand 
pounds  sterling,  expressly  to  afford  the  colonists  an  opportunity 
to  im{)rove  the  breed  of  their  horses.  And  at  the  Upper  Fort,  I 
was  shown  a  lull  of  extraordinary  size,  and  of  the  pure  Durham 
blood,  wOiich  the  Companj'  had  also  bixjught  from  England,  for  the 
purpose  of  improving  the  cattle  of  the  colony. 

In  entering  npon  these  particulars  respecting  a  farming  commu- 
ity  five  hundred  miles  north  of  us,  my  object  first  is  to  ex- 
hibit to  you  how  people  live  and  what  kind  of  farming  they  carry 
on  in  a  country  that  is  perliaps  really  "  too  cold  for  corn"  as  a 
common  field  crop  ;  and  second,  but  mainly,  to  show,  how  wide  a 
scope  of  arable  land,  capable  of  supporting  and  destined  to  support 
some  day,  tens  of  thousands  of  farmers,  is  spread  out  away  north, 
ward,  in  regions  which  are  now  ignorantly  considered  impradicabh 
lor  profitable  tillage,  on  account  of  the  supposed  rigors  of  their 
climate. 

Why,  away  up  on  Peace  River,  on  the  extreme  nortliern  slope  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  they  raise  around  the  Hudson  Bay  posts,  as 
Gov.  Colville  told  me,  as  fine  barley  as  any  where  in  the  world,  and 
yet  that  is  in  latitude  GO  degrees  north-  or  a  thousand  miles  nearer 
the  North  Pole  than  we  are  ! 

But  without  casting  more  than  a  passing  glance  on  the  agricul- 
tural capacity  of  remote  Peace  River,  we  may  come  down  to  the 
fertile  valley  and  plains  of  the  great  Saskatchewan,  the  Mississip. 
pi  of  Ihe  North,  which  pours  its  waters  from  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains over  more  than  a  tkousn:ii  miles  of  aiyririltiiral  territory,  teeming 
with  coal  and  otlier  mineral  treasures,  into  Great  Lake  Winnipc  g 


j: E I )  i;  1  \'  !•:  11  s kttle.ments. 


05 


ist  ovory- 
liis,  farm- 
rkot  ;  be- 
•e  was  no 
phrase  in 
pborically 

hen  I  was 
d  Horses, 
t  fruits  of 
?  have  al- 
;ntly  been 

jns  to  aid 
,  a  splendid 
nts,  \vhich 
)  thousand 
pportunity 
)er  Fort,  I 
•e  Durham 
rid,  for  the 


i<r  commu- 


tl 


is  to  ex- 
ley  carry 


;oru'  as  a 
itow  wide  a 
to  support 
ivay  north- 
ipracticahle 
rs  of  their 

rn  slope  of 
posts,  as 
kvorld,  and 
ties  nearer 

agricul- 

7\\  to  the 

iMississip- 

bky  Moun- 

L  teeiuiiiji: 

\Vi)inip(  g 


of  the  North  ;  and  we  may  note  the  still  more  fertile  and  desirable 
lands  of  its  South  or  Umv  liiver  Branch,  the  winter  homo  in  its 
wooded  valleys  of  the  bullalo  and  myriads  of  other  <^amo,  but 
which  was  for  a  long-  time  inaccessible  to  the  wliite  man  im  ac- 
count of  the  l.'ordes  of  hostile  savages  which  its  recesses  contain- 
ed ;  as  far  north  as  these  regions  are,  actual  erperimnil  has  shown 
them  to  be  capable  of  raising  successfully  nearly  every  cereal, 
hardly  excelling  corn,  and  every  vegetable  that  can  be  produced, 
in  our  lands  of  the  temperate  zone  further  South. 

From  Avhat    1  have  seen  of  the  land  in  that  direction,  and  from 
what  I  learned  respecting  its  capacity,  and   making  every  allow- 
ance for  its  climate,  and  for  its  extraordinary  fertility  also,  I  hesi- 
tate not  to  ascrilc  to  ike  uhde  of  the  upper  ploim  on  holh  branches  of  the 
Saskatchewan  liiver,  an  agricultural  value  superior  naturally  to  the  fields' 
of  our  iVeui  Eng''and  in,  their  primitire  conditio?!;  and  though  laek   of 
timhcr  might  be  an  objection  to  some  portions  of  the  Saskatchewan 
territory,  yet  it  has  mineral  coal  in  abundance,  which  may  be  easi- 
ly mined   to  supply  fuel  for  a  |)opulation  of  the  densest  character. 
And  in  regard  to  this  very  country,  remote  as  it  is,  and  notwith- 
standing the  prevailing  misconception  of  the  severity  of  the  win- 
ter's cold,  and  of  the  warmth  of  its  summer  heat,  I  venture  to  put 
on  the  mantle  of  a  prophet  and  say,  that  some  men  who  now  hear 
me  will  live  to  see  its  present  sparse  and  halfhunter  race  displaced 
by  the  advancing  tide  oi farmers  seeking  homes,  who,  after  AEinnesota 
is  packed  and  crammed  with  immigrants,  will  swell  resistless  over 
the  border  upon  those  northern  plains. 

Not,  gentlemen,  that  Minnesota  is  yet  near,  nor  will  be  for  many 
years  to  come,  so  full  oi  farmers  that  the  annual  immigrants  cannot 
find  places  in  it  unclaimed,  whereupon  to  set  up  their  family  altars, 
or  lands  into  which  they  are  not  free  to  strike  deep  their  hoes  and 
plows.  • 

Those  who  think  the  cup  of  our  farming  capacity  near  full,  little 
know  its  depth  and  breadth,  and  tlie  volume  it  will  contain. 

Those  who  have  fears,  that  the  "good  country"  in  which  to  make 
daims  is  nearly  absorbed,  take  but  a  limited  view  of  the  topography 
and  geography  of  our  Territory. 

What  else  is  there  occupied  by  claimants  as  yet,  but  compara- 
tively mirroio  strips  on  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota  rivers?  The 
tchole  interior  lies  untouched,  awaiting  to  receive  within  its  luxuri- 
ous bosom  a  million  of  farmers  if  tiiey  should  come  along  in  search 
of  "homes  for  the  homeless  and  land  for  the  landless," 

In  the  treaties  with  the  Sioux  Indians  of  ISf)],  weic  purchased 
over  40,0C0,000  aiics  (A  land,   nearly  all  arable,  with  less  waste 


T^ 


96 


VISIT   TO   THIS 


land  am»/.  y;  it  than  could  be  found  iu  any  country  of  so  great  ex- 
tent in  the  world. 

And  how  much  of  this,  do  you  think,  has,  up  to  this  time,  been 
appropriated  by  settlers,  or  sold  to. speculators? 

Not  much  over  one-eighth  of  it,  Bcarcely  an  acre  over  5,000,000, 
leaving-  35,000,000  acres  of  the  Sioux  Purchase  alone,  still  open  to 
uew-cohiors  and  settlers! 

South  of  the  Minnesota,  cast  of  the  Big  Sioux,  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, and  north  of  the  Iowa  line,  there  is  an  Agricultural  Basin 
of  rich  lands  well  watered  and  heavily  timbered,  wliich  has  onl}' 
been  touched  upon,  or  barely  dipped  into. 

There  is  a  chance  in  that  Basin  to  submerge,  to  bury  up,  two 
hundred  thousand  farmers  more;  bury  them  deep  in  luxuriant  corn* 
fields,  and  place  huge  wheat  and  oat  stacks  an  buoys  to  mark  where 
each  "bold  farmer"  went  down! 

In  another  portion  of  that  Purchase,  north  of  the  Minnesota,  and 
west  of  the  Mississippi,  to  the  Otter-Tail  Lake  branch  of  the  Red 
River  of  the  North,  there  is  hardly  a  commtncemmt  of  settlement  far 
back  from  the  main  river! 

Much  of  this  region  I  have  myself  seen  by  passing  through, 
sufficiently  to  pronounce  it  surpassed  in  fertility  and  agricultural 
capacity  generally,  by  no  other  part  of  the  Territory,  if  it  can  be 
equalled. 

It  is  a  paradise  of  beautiful  lakes  and  groves,  and  waving  mea- 
dows rank  with  fine  grasses,  often  as  tall  as  a  man  riding  on 
horseback! 

Parties  are  just  beginning  to  explore  the  recesses  of  this  noble 
country — and  their  favorable  reports,  and  the  roads  by  which  they 
make  it  accessible,  will  ere  long  roll  in  a  tide  of  immigration  upon 
it,  which  will  astonish  those  croakers  who  are  already  alarmed 
about  land  for  "  claims  "  growing  scarce! 

Then,  there  is  the  garden-like  region  around  Otter-Tail  Lake, 
and  on  the  beautifully  diversified  streams  fiowing  from  it,  to  which 
emigrants  may  fly  when  the  nearer  lands  are  all  absorbed,  if  they 
will  wait  until  then. 

And  last  but  not  least,  to  use  a  common-place  saying,  there  is 
the  glorious  valley  and  wide  savannas  of  the  Red  River  of  the 
North  itself,  clear  up  to  Pembina  near  the  British  line,  inviting  the 
Farmer,  whether  stock  grower  or  grain  raiser,  to  luxuriate  upon 
its  fertile  bosom— -a  laud  now  flowing  with  milk  and  buffalo — a 
valley  watered  by  a  river  the  most  admirably  calculated  by  the 
depth  of  its  channel,  its  freedom  from  rapids,  and  the  sluggishness 
of  its  current  for  navigation  by  steamboats  for  over  500  miles— a 


KED   KIVER    SETTLEMENT. 


97 


valley,  or  rather  a  slightly  oval  basin,  with  islands  of  timber  dot- 
ting it  over,  the  bluff  slope  of  the  Coteau  du  Prairie  bounding  itg 
horizon  on  the  west,  and  heavy  woods  east  of  the  river  circum- 
scribing it  in  that  direction. 

Here  in  this  lovely  valley  there  is  room  and  verge  enough  for 
population  to  spread  itself  out  in  every  direction;  and  I  look  to 
see  it  blossom  with  roses  and  flowers  from  cultivated  gardens 
around  comfortable  farm  houses,  as  it  does  now  with  the  wild 
flowers  which,  in  the  summer  season,  involve  the  voyageir  on  Red 
River  in  a  continuous  atmosphere  of  perfume,  as  he  paddles  down 
its  stream  in  his  bark  canoe. 

It  is  now  a  kind  of  "  no  man's  land,"  which  even  the  Indian  does 
not  occupy;  for  it  is  a  war-ground  where  opposing  parties  of  the 
savage  family  meet  each  other  occasionally  in  desperate  conflict, 
and  which  for  that  reason  they  have  nearly  totally  abandoned. 

In  my  whole  journey  of  nearly  two  months  travel,  to  and  from 
Pembina  in  1851,  I  did  not  see  the  face  of  a  human  being  besides 
those  of  our  own  party. 

^  How  long  will  this  character  of  human  desolation  be  ascribed  to, 
it  by  travellers  through  its  otherwise  smiling  plains  ? 

So  great  is  the  luxuriance  of  the  grasses  in  this  valley,  that  the 
buffalo  winter  there  and  find  food  by  pawing  away  the  snow  to  get 
at  the  sward  beneath. 

Even  at  its  idtima  thule  at  Pembina  Mountains,  where  I  stayed 
with  the  Rev.  Mr.  Belcourt  on  the  night  of  October  2d,  1851,  water- 
melons  and  cantelopes  were  served  to  us  for  desert,  and  the  first 
frost  that  occurred  sufficient  to  kill  those  vines,  was  on  the  very 
night  I  passed  at  that  point,  at  which  is  located  the  thriving  set- 
tlement  of  Saint  Joseph,  the  principal  village  of  those  Half  Breeds 
of  the  North  who  reside  on  the  American  side  of  the  line.  We  also 
saw  some  Indian  corn  raised  there,  the  seed  of  which  had  been 
brought  over  from  the  missionary  station  at  Red  Lake. 


--^-.jf 


OS 


STEAMIIOAT   NAVIOATION. 


ATPENDIX     NO.    IX. 


rnOCKKDrX'i.S  of  a  PL'ULIC  meeting  IIELD  at  SAIN'T  ANTIIOW  OXTUE  TWELrrH 

OF  JULY,   1858. 


Pursuant  to  adjournment,  a  large  nnnibor  of  the  citizens  of  St. 
Anthony  and  Minneapolis  convened  at  the  Winslow  House,  to  take 
further  measures  to  open  the  emigrant  route  to  the  Frazer  River 
mines,  Geo.  F.  Ukott  resumed  the  Chair.  The  Committee  appoint- 
ed to  enquire  into  the  feasibility  of  steam  navigation  on  the 
northern  route,  &c.,  made  the  following  report: 

Your  Committee  having  under  consideration  the  practicability 
of  steamboat  navigation  by  way  of  the  Red  River,  Lake  Winnipeg 
and  the  Saskatchewan  to  the  gold  regions  on  Thompson  and  Fra- 
zer  rivers,  and  over  the  land  route  in  the  same  direction,  beg  leave 
to  make  the  following  report. 

That  upon  examination  of  Capt.  Pope's  report  of  his  survey  of 
the  Red  River  of  the  North,  the  depth  of  water  from  Breckin^ 
ridge  at  .ibuth  of  the  Sioux  Wood  River  to  the  Wild  Rice  Riv- 
er, is  four  x,.<3t;  from  thence  down  to  Shayenne  River  and  further 
to  the  mouth  of  the  Red  Lake  River,  from  eight  to  nine  feet, 
and  from  thence  to  Pembina  and  Selkirk  Settlement,  fifteen 
feet,  and  this  continues  to  where  it  debouches  into  Lake  Win- 
nipeg. Lake  Winnipeg  is  long,  narrow  and  deep.  The  Saskatch- 
ewan River  is  said  to  be  very  large — about  the  size  of  the  Missis- 
sippi near  Dububue.  Gov.  Simpson,  in  his  notes  of  travel  up  that 
River,  pronounces  it  navigable  for  seven  hundred  miles  in  a  direct 
line  towards  the  Rocky  Mountains,  with  only  one  rapid  to  obstruct 
navigation.  How  difficult  the  rapid  to  be  overcome  is,  we  have 
not  sufficient  information  to  determine. 

We  are  satisfied  that  there  is  no  perpendicular  fall,  for  Gov. 
Simpson  says  "that  canoes  and  flat  boats  pass  over  the  rapids  with 
safety."  With  tiie  exception  of  the  rapids  above  mentioned,  your 
Committee  are  of  the  opinion,  that  it  is  entirely  feasible  to  traverse 
said  route  by  steamboat,  from  Breckenridge,  by  the  Rocky  Moun* 
tain  House,  only  about  two  hundred  miles  distant  from  the  gold 
mines  on  Thompson  River.      We   calculated   the   distance   from 


^ 


STKAMIJOAT     NA\'  IGATIOX. 


9d 


Brockem-idgo,  by  river  to  Liko  Winnipcrr  f,,,^.  imndred  miles,  from 
thciico  to  llio  mouth  of  the  Saskatcliewaa,  two  limulrcd  miles,  and 
up  said  river  to  the  Rocky  Mouatain  liouso,  one  thousand  miles, 
makiujj  tlie  distance  of  continuous  waier  communication  sixteen 
hundred  and  fifty  miles,  .From  St.  Cloud,  the  head  of  navi|,^'ition 
of  the  Upper  Mississippi,  to  Hreckenridge,  the  distance  overland  is 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  miles,  making  from  S:.  Anthony  to 
Prazer  and  Thompson  Kivor  j^fold  mines,  about  three  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles  of  overland  travel  only,  a  part  of  wliich  passes 
through  a  country  thickly  settled.  The  advantages  of  this  route 
more  fully  appears,  by  consulting  l'(jpe's  report,  describing  the  rich 
valley  of  the  Red  River,  with  its  luxuriant  vegetation,  abounding 
with  wild  fruit  and  fragrant  witjj  fiowers  ;  also  by  consulting 
Blodgot's  Climatology,  and  tracing,  the  course  of  the  isothermal 
lines,  showing  the  climate  and  tcmperaUire  of  Chicago  and  St.  An- 
thony to  extend  in  a  Northwest  direction  along  our  proposed  emi- 
grant route,  and  as  far  as  the  fifty-fifth  degree  of  north  latitude. 
The  average  depth  of  rain  in  a  year  along  this  route  is  estimated 
at  thirty-two  inches,  while  on  the  plains  on  the  central  and  southern 
routes  the  depth  of  water  is  estimated  at  two  inches,  showing  that 
trees  and  vegetation  necessary  for  the  habitation  and  the  susten- 
ance of  man  grow  in  great  abundance;  and  that  most  of  the  way, 
if  not  all,  dent  corn  will  grow  and  mature  along  tliis  rorthorn 
route  which  it  will  not  do  in  New  York  or  the  New  England 
States.       , 

Your  Committee  would  recommend  that  active  measures  be  im- 
mediately taken  to  construct  a  suitable  steamboat,  to  test  the  nav- 
igation of  this  route,  and  would  further  recommend  that  a  sum  of 
five  thousand  dollars  be  raised  to  be  donated  to  some  competent 
person  who  will  contract  to  build  a  boat  as  above  described,  at 
Breckenridge,  all  complete  by  the  first  day  of  May  next.  We  would 
also  recommend,  that  a  Committee  be  appointed  to  correspond  with 
the  Governor  of  Hudson  Bay  Territory,  and  such  other  persona  as 
would  be  likely  to  assist  in  putting  a  line  of  steamers  on  said  route. 
Your  Committee  estimate  that  by  steamboat,  the  emigrant  can  ac- 
complish a  journey  to  Prazer  River  by  the  way  of  Red  River,  Lake 
Winnipeg  and  the  Saskatchewan,  in  one- third  of  the  time,  at  less 
cost  and  with  much  less  hardship  and  danger  than  would  be  neces- 
sarily incurred  in  traveling  the  overland  route.  The  Committee  in 
the  short  time  allowed  them,  have  not  matured  a  report  as  they 
desired;  we  trust  however,  that  what  knowledge  we  have,  is  suffi- 
cient to  engage  the  active  co-operation  of  everyMinnesotianin  the 
enterprise. 


100 


6TKAMU0AT    NAVIGATION. 


On  motion  the  report  was  aclof)tod;  remarks  w(3re  made  by  E.  M, 
Wilson,  of  Minneapolis,  Geo,  W.  Wilson,  of  Virginia,  Geo.  F. 
Ubott,  Geo.  IIoli.isteu  and  others,  in  reference  to  the  climate,  soil, 
timber,  &c.,  of  the  Red  Rivflf'  Valley,  and  the  character  and  depth 
of  water  of  the  river,  all  of  whom  concurred  in  giving-  a  very  favor- 
able description. 

On  motion,  Richahd  Chute  o^"  St.  Anthony,  W,  J.  Paksons,  and 
E.  M.  Wilson  (jf  Minneapolis,  w(»ro  appointed  a  Conunittco  of  cor- 
respondence, to  communicate  with  such  persons  in  this  State  and 
elsewhere,  as  may  be  deemed  necessary  to  promote  the  object  of 
the  meeting*. 

On  motion,  Gko.  F.  Bhott,  D.  S.  B.  JoriN\sroN,  and  IIkxry  T. 
Welles,  were  appointed  (•ommittee  to  raise  by  subscription  five 
thousand  dollars,  and  to  contract  for  a  steamboat  to  be  built  on 
Red  River  at  the  earliest  time  convenient. 

On  nKjtion  of  W.  J.  Farjons,  the  following  resolution  was 
adopted: 

Whereas,  It  has  upon  conference  had  witli  some  of  the  most  ox. 
perienced  voyaguers  and  pioneers  of  the  northwest,  boon  ascer- 
tained that  the  Red  River  of  the  North  from  the  town  of  Breoken- 
ridgo  at  mouth  of  the  Bois  Des   Sioux  is  navigable  to  its  mouth, 
and 

Whereas,  This  statement  is  fully  corroborated  by  Capt.  Pope,  U. 
S.  Top.  Engineer  in  the  oiricial  report  of  the  U.  S.  survey  of  1849, 
and 

Whereas,  Gov.  Slmpsox,  in  his  able  report  of  his  survey  of  the 
Saskatchewan  Valley,  has  fully  demonstrated  the  i)racticability  of 
steam  navigation  of  the  Saskatchewan  River  to  within  200  miles 
of  Tiiompson  River,  a  branch  of  Frazer  River  in  British  Oregan, 
therefore 

Resolved,  That  the  way  proposed  in  the  Committee's  report  for  an 
emigrant  route,  from  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony  to  the  gold  mines 
of  Frazer  River,  is  not  only  practicable,  but  is  the  best  and  most 
expeditious  route  for  emigrants  from  aii}'  and  all  points  east  of  St. 
Anthony's  Falls  to  that  region. 

On  motion  the  nieeting«adjourned.* 

*  Tliese  proceedings,  bearing  directly  upon  the  suLject  discussed  by.thc  House  Com- 
mittee, should  have  been  previously  inserted;  but  were  not  received  until  most  of  the 
present  publication  had  passed  through  the  ))ress.  They  are  transferred  from  the 
columns  of  the  St.  Anthony  ExpreS'i  of  the  17th  of  July. 


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